Cuomo dominates Jewish vote in new poll, as Israeli TV pillories Mamdani

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🤝 Jewish petitions continue to fly

• Over 200 rabbis and hundreds other American Jews have signed a new open letter rejecting Jewish criticism of Zohran Mamdani’s pro-Palestinian views, in the latest sign of deep fissures roiling both clergy and congregants over the mayoral race.

• “In response to Jewish concerns about the New York mayoral race, we recognize that candidate Zohran Mamdani’s support for Palestinian self-determination stems not from hate, but from his deep moral convictions,” said the group.

• The letter did not endorse Mamdani and said the signatories had “areas where we may disagree,” but advocated “working across differences” amid rising antisemitism and Islamophobia and said that “Jewish safety cannot be built on Muslim vulnerability.”

• This letter titled “Jews for a Shared Future” comes a week after another letter from a coalition of rabbis calling themselves the “Jewish Majority,” who denounced Mamdani and the “political normalization” of anti-Zionism. That letter has now topped 1,150 signatories, including hundreds in New York City, and has divided congregations.

• Rhetoric surrounding the mayoral race has grown increasingly heated in congregations across the country. Las Vegas Rabbi Felipe Goodman, who signed the “Jewish Majority” letter, recently compared Mamdani supporters to Jews who aligned themselves with Hitler before World War II for self-preservation, according to The New York Times.

• “We have been very intimidated over speaking about politics for the longest time. The gloves have to come off now,” said Goodman, adding, “If people have a problem with me saying that, they do not belong in the same space as me.”

• Marc Schneier, a prominent rabbi of the Hampton Synagogue and friend of Mamdani’s rival Andrew Cuomo, rejected claims that Islamophobia significantly influenced the backlash to Mamdani in a New York Daily News op-ed published Wednesday.

• “Throughout my more than two decades of building bridges between Jews and Muslims across the Arab and Muslim world, I can tell you that Mamdani’s views on Israel are not only out of touch with Judaism, but they are out of step with the broader Islamic leadership,” said Schneier.

📊 Numbers to know

• Cuomo dominates Jewish voters in the last Quinnipiac poll before Election Day. The poll predicted him winning 60% of Jews, trailed by 16% for Mamdani and 12% for Sliwa.

• Quinnipiac found that 75% of Jewish voters had an unfavorable opinion of Mamdani and 50% had an unfavorable opinion of Cuomo, suggesting that many Jewish Cuomo voters may be motivated by disliking Mamdani more than they dislike Cuomo.

• The survey lined up with others that show Mamdani winning the race with a narrowing lead. It found Mamdani gaining 43% support, followed by 33% for Cuomo and 14% for Sliwa, with 6% undecided.

• Quinnipiac polled 911 likely voters from Oct. 23-27, with an error margin of 4%.

• While other polls have predicted Cuomo winning the Jewish vote, his margin varies widely. A recent Fox News poll gave him just a 4-point advantage, winning 42% of Jewish voters to Mamdani’s 38%.

• Another new poll from Marist shows Mamdani with a 16-point lead. It did not break out results for Jewish voters.

🕍 Cuomo cancels on synagogue

• Cuomo canceled a town hall at Congregation Beth Elohim, a Reform synagogue in Park Slope, three hours before it was set to take place on Tuesday.

• CBE previously hosted Mamdani and Republican Curtis Sliwa to take questions from New York Jews. Mamdani’s appearance was protested by dozens of congregants and pro-Israel activists.

• While the reasoning for his cancellation was unclear, around the time of his scheduled CBE appearance, Cuomo’s X account posted photos of him canvassing in the Bronx earlier in the day and reposted a tweet about falsified criticism by Bill de Blasio of Mamdani.

• The cancellation appeared to have disrupted the plans of parents whose children attend CBE’s after school program, according to a since-deleted post on X by Mattan Berner-Kadish, who teaches Hebrew at CBE.

• “I work at a synagogue that both Sliwa/ Mamdani spoke at,” wrote Berner-Kadish. “Today, two hours before Cuomo’s turn, with us already having cancelled class, he cancelled! congregants who wanted to hear something to allow them to excuse his horrible history got ghosted instead lol.”

🏆 Endorsement tracker

• Billionaire former Mayor Michael Bloomberg endorsed Cuomo and pumped $1.5 million into a super PAC supporting his campaign Wednesday in a last-minute push to help Cuomo beat Mamdani.

• “Being Mayor of New York City is the second toughest job in America, and the next mayor will face immense challenges,” Bloomberg said on X with a photo of him wearing an early voter sticker. “Andrew Cuomo has the experience and toughness to stand up for New Yorkers and get things done.”

• Bloomberg previously endorsed Cuomo during the Democratic primary, when he also spent $8 million on a pro-Cuomo PAC. He later met with Mamdani over the summer after Mamdani’s primary victory. Bloomberg differs with Mamdani dramatically on several issues, as a moderate and longtime defender of Israel.

• A panel of 14 New Yorkers convened by the New York Times Opinion board endorsed Mamdani for mayor. Before the June primary, the panel chose Brad Lander for the Democratic nominee and had Cuomo, Mamdani and former hedge fund executive Whitney Tilson tied for second place.

✍ Orthodox leaders weigh in

• The Satmar political committee, representing an ultra-Orthodox Hasidic community in Brooklyn, said it would not endorse a candidate in a statement on Wednesday.

• The group also said, “We feel compelled to distance ourselves from the irresponsible scare campaign and incitement against Zohran Mamdani.”

• The statement decried “false and dangerous” portrayals of Mamdani as hostile to Jews. The Satmars prioritize keeping their religious ways of life free from regulation by local governments.

• On the same day, Cuomo and Mayor Eric Adams met with Satmar leaders in hopes of earning their support.

📺 TV attacks on Mamdani

• Benj Irby, a host on the right-wing TV channel Newsmax, compared Jewish supporters of Mamdani to “chickens for KFC” and “cows for McDonalds” because of what he called Mamdani’s “ties to extremists.”

• Irby added, “The promise of free stuff makes Jews forget that he’s an extremist.”

• The Israeli comedy show “Eretz Nehederet” also targeted Mamdani on Wednesday. In a sketch featuring the parody of a Mamdani ad, an actor playing Mamdani wished viewers “Intifada Tova” instead of “Shana Tova,” sang “Nagil Jihada” instead of “Hava Nagila” and praised “Hamas” instead of “hummus.”