Forget the old Jews in Palm Beach who voted for Pat Buchanan by accident. This year it could be absentee ballots from Israel that make the difference.
At least that’s what the Republican Jewish Coalition is thinking… its executive director, Matt Brooks, and big-name cheerleader, former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer, will be in Israel next week to sign up expats to vote:
"If you look at the numbers, there is a significant opportunity out there for the Republicans to mine a number of votes," Brooks said, noting that Americans in Israel tend to favor Mitt Romney, the GOP presidential candidate, over President Obama, in contrast to United States, where Jews tend to favor Democrats. "If this election is going to be as close as people think it is, and with the support Romney is getting in Israel, being able to turn out American voters, especially from battleground states, could be critical."
An RJC release said the tour, from July 9-13 "will include media events, town hall meetings with U.S. citizens living abroad, and meetings with leading bloggers and social media activists on Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms who are expert in communicating directly with potential voters."
"It’s a long flight, but when you think about Israel being home to 150,000 American voters, it’s also the equivalent of visiting Dayton, Ohio or Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. to get out the message," Fleischer said in the statement. "In this election, every vote is going to be important."
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
