Some elements of the survey by the Pat Brown Institute are dubious, but the consistent pattern of Orthodox Jews being conservative stands strong even in Los Angeles, where the left-wing “Open Orthodox” movement (a non-Orthodox group) has had its greatest success.
A high percentage of Orthodox Jews think of themselves as Republican, and similarly high levels approve of President Trump. For examole, 70% of Orthodox voters approve of the president, including 55% who strongly approve.
That’s in LA. The numbers are higher in New York City and elsewhere. That’s what I previously noted in, “Trump’s Jews and Obama’s Jews.”
Seen from above, the 2016 electoral map of New York City is blue with dots of red. Trump’s home district is blue, but across the water a red wedge slices into Brooklyn. Around that red wedge are districts where Hillary won 90 percent of the vote and Trump was lucky to get 5 percent. Inside it, he beat her in district after district.
The voters who handed him that victory are the Chassidic Jews of Williamsburg who dress in fur hats and black caftans. Their districts, crammed in by hipsters and minorities, are a world away from the progressive activist temples whose clergy went into mourning at Hillary’s loss.
East of Prospect Park, in a vast sea of blue, is what looks like a red sofa. Trump won here with the Chabad Chassidim of Crown Heights. He won in the more mainstream Orthodox Jewish communities of Flatbush.
And apparently, he’s winning among the Orthodox Jews of Los Angeles.
Leave a Reply