The Jewish Democratic Council of America, the leading Jewish group affiliated with the Democratic Celebration, endorsed George Latimer in his bid to unseat New York Rep. Jamaal Bowman within the upcoming main.
It additionally endorsed Wesley Bell in his marketing campaign to unseat Rep. Cori Bush in Missouri, marking the primary time that the Jewish Democrats have endorsed main challengers to Democratic incumbents.
Each incumbent has been a vocal critic of Israel. In New York’s sixteenth district, which covers southern Westchester County and a sliver of the northern Bronx and is the residence of a predominantly Jewish neighbourhood, the Israel-Hamas warfare has turned out to be a focus of the intently watched marketing campaign.
Latimer, a centrist who serves as Westchester County govt, has been firmly supportive of Israel since Hamas’ October 7 assault. Bowman, who’s a member of the Squad, the group of progressive Democratic members of Congress, has been harshly essential of the Israeli navy marketing campaign in Gaza, accusing Israel of “genocide.”
The Jewish Democratic Council of America endorsed Latimer on Thursday alongside 21 candidates, New Yorkers Mondaire Jones within the seventeenth district and Josh Riley within the nineteenth district.
In a press release, the council’s chair-elect, Susie Stern, known as Latimer, an ally to Jewish New Yorkers who “resolutely stands behind our neighbourhood when difficult moments come up, together with the present one.”
Latimer hailed the council’s endorsement in addition to the group’s assist for causes together with supporting Israel, combating antisemitism, combating gun violence and defending abortion rights.
“As we proceed to construct our grassroots marketing campaign, their assistance will be important for ensuring each voice is heard in this essential election,” Latimer stated in a press release.
Latimer entered the race in December after months of the hypothesis that he would mount a problem with Bowman, who was first elected in 2020, after receiving encouragement from Jewish supporters. He has additionally nabbed an endorsement from the pro-Israel foyer AIPAC. The Democratic Majority for Israel, an advocacy group, applauded his entry into the race.
Latimer has taken an extra pro-Israel stance in keeping with extra centrist Democrats. He visited Israel in November on a visit organized by the Westchester Jewish Council. He stated earlier this month that he helped a brief ceasefire that might result in the discharge of the hostages, in keeping with the Democratic occasion management.
Each candidate raised around $1.4 million within the final quarter of 2023.
In February, Latimer accused Bowman of taking cash from Hamas while talking at a marketing campaign occasion. Bowman threatened a defamation lawsuit in response.
Bowman’s preliminary ceasefire name didn’t point out Hamas or the hostages.
Bowman, a former centre college principal, unseated longtime incumbent Eliot Engel, who’s Jewish, in 2020. His ties with many Jewish constituents had frayed earlier than October 7 on account of his criticism of Israel. He angered Jewish voters early within the warfare by urging a ceasefire on October 16 in a press release that didn’t point out Hamas, terrorism or Israeli hostages.
The liberal Israel foyer J Road rescinded its endorsement of Bowman in January over his rhetoric on warfare. Bowman has aimed his fireplace at AIPAC and publicly feuded with it online.
Bowman’s remarks on Israel have continued to canine him. This week, footage surfaced by Politico confirmed Bowman at a November rally expressing doubt that Israeli ladies had been raped on October 7, calling the allegations “propaganda.” In a press release to Politico this week, Bowman walked against this feedback.
“The UN confirmed that Hamas dedicated rape and sexual violence, a reprehensible undeniable fact that I condemn fully,” the assertion stated, noting that Bowman voted for a decision condemning rape and sexual violence by Hamas. “So let me be clear and guarantee my phrases usually are not twisted: I all the time stand in opposition to sexual violence in all types and stand for peace for all.”
In November, Bowman held a gathering with Jewish constituents targeted at antisemitism. There was a small protest ahead of the occasion, although two contributors informed the New York Jewish Week that the assembly was productive, and Bowman appeared attentive to their issues. Two outstanding rabbis within the space stated that many of the neighbourhood would decline to attend the occasion.
Separate from the warfare in Gaza, the congressman has confronted different controversies in recent months. In January, the Daily Beast reported that Bowman had promoted 9/11 conspiracy theories on his private weblog in 2011. The Home formally censured Bowman in December for setting off a hearth alarm at the U.S. Capitol.
