The National Jewish Democratic Council on Monday released results of a new survey regarding the positions of American Jews on the upcoming presidential elections. The poll was carried out in late July by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, and has a margin of error of 3.5 percent. Following are a dozen highlights of the findings. If the presidential election were held today, 75 percent of respondents said they would vote for Sen. John Kerry (D.-Mass.), with 22 percent saying they would vote for President Bush. In 2000, Al Gore won 79 percent of the Jewish vote to Bush’s 19 percent.
Some 25 percent approve of Bush’s performance as president, while 75 percent disapprove.
Asked to identify their two most important concerns in selecting a president, 42 percent listed terrorism/national security and the economy and jobs. Israel came in a distant sixth, with 15 percent calling it one of their most important issues. Also beating! out Israel were affordable health care, the situation in Iraq and Social Security and Medicare.
Fully 95 percent of respondents said they were “almost certain” to vote in the upcoming presidential elections. Another 5 percent said they would “probably” vote.
66 percent of respondents believe Kerry is better on Israel than President Bush, while 34 percent said Bush trumps Kerry when it comes to the Jewish state.
66 percent believe Kerry is better on the war on terrorism than President Bush, while 34 percent said Bush is better in the war on terrorism.
71 percent are convinced Kerry would be better on the war in Iraq than Bush, while 29 percent said they think Bush is better on Iraq.
71 percent think Kerry will make America stronger than Bush will, while 29 percent said they think Bush will make America stronger.
71 percent think Kerry would be better at representing the interests of American Jews, while 29 percent said Bush would be better. 78 percent of respondents think Kerry is better than Bush on the r ole of religion in public life and politics, while 22 percent prefer Bush on this issue.
77 percent feel that things in the United States have gotten “pretty seriously off on the wrong track,” while 23 percent feel things are going in “the right direction.”
76 percent favor civil unions for homosexual couples, while 24 percent said marriage should be recognized only as the union of a man and a woman.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
