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By Luke Tress
In about six months, New York City will almost certainly choose its next mayor in the Democratic primary — and Jewish issues could take center stage in the campaign.
The campaign for the June 2024 primary — which is the competitive race in this solidly blue city — features multiple Jewish candidates. But all of the hopefuls may be called upon to address issues of Jewish concern, from street protests about the Israel-Hamas war to public funding for haredi Orthodox yeshivas.
New York City is home to roughly 1 million Jews. And given how news about Israel and Gaza has dominated the headlines and activist spaces over the past year-plus, non-Jewish New Yorkers may pay some attention to those issues, too.
“I think there’s going to be a lot of focus, perhaps even disproportionate focus, on ‘Jewish issues.’ That’s happening at the national level. It’s certainly going to be happening here in the city,” Phylisa Wisdom, the head of New York Jewish Agenda, a liberal advocacy group, said.
“Of course, Jewish voters are focused on issues that impact us, but I think our neighbors are [focused on them] in this election as well, in a way that is perhaps unusual,” she said.
Here’s a rundown of the Jewish issues that could feature in the 2025 mayoral election.
Masking laws
Some New York legislators have sought to combat the protests and associated acts of vandalism with legislation banning masking, which police say makes it harder to prosecute crimes. Long Island’s Nassau County passed a masking ban in response to anti-Israel protests in August, and Jewish groups and legislators are pushing for an anti-masking law at the state level, an idea Mayor Eric Adams, who is running for reelection, has endorsed.
Alicia Singham Goodwin, the political director of Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, a leftist group in the city that has participated in pro-Palestinian rallies and come out against anti-masking legislation, called the measure “anti-protest, anti-free speech.”
“We at JFREJ certainly want a mayor who will protect our right to protest, who will protect our freedom of speech, who will prioritize the functions of democracy that we rely on to get change,” she said. “And so I think an antagonism towards protesters is not productive.”
Hate crimes and antisemitism
Singham Goodwin said progressive Jews would support candidates who use “genuine compassion and understanding” to combat antisemitism through programs like education and mental health services rather than law enforcement.
“We’re looking for candidates who take public safety actually seriously and don’t just say, ‘I would write the NYPD a blank check to do whatever they want,’” she said.
Israel
The “Not On Our Dime” act, legislation backed by [DSA], may also become a campaign issue. The bill aims to block New York nonprofits from “engaging in unauthorized support of Israeli settlement activity.” Pro-Israel critics say the bill’s broad scope would target Jewish organizations, snarl charity work by forcing an onerous vetting process, and hamper humanitarian groups from providing essential services.
Queens Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani, who introduced the bill, is running for mayor as a Democratic Socialist. His website touts his efforts to “bar charities from funding illegal Israeli settlements.” JFREJ has come out in support of the Not On Our Dime Act and Democratic Socialist candidates in the race.
“What JFREJ members are looking for and what those types of Jewish voters are looking for is candidates who are going to be leaders who express empathy with Palestinians alongside the empathy we expect and need them to express for Israelis and Jews,” Singham Goodwin said.