Top Candidates
Upcoming races could place Jews in governors' mansions.
SHARON SAMBER
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Jews have played an impressive role in American
politics, serving as presidential appointees, members
of presidents' cabinets and congressional legislators.
But there have been few Jewish gubernatorial can-
didates, and even fewer Jewish governors. Oddly,
almost all of the Jewish governors have served in
states with few Jews, such as Alaska, Idaho and Utah.
Washington, D. C.
surprising number of Jewish candidates
are seeking governorships across the
country, an office that has eluded a signif-
icant Jewish political presence.
With 36 gubernatorial races this fall, seven
Jewish candidates are in the running. It's not a
staggering number, but only 17 Jews have served as
governors since 1801 — though data for the early
years is not precise.
With the U.S. Senate now able to hold a min-
yan, the Jewish candidates — all but one of whom
are Democrats — are trying make inroads into a
new political arena.
Two primary election races on May 21 will help
determine the chances in November. In
Ed Rendell
Steve Grossman
Bev Stein
Pennsylvania, Ed Rendell, the former mayor of
Philadelphia, faces Pat Casey. Rendell is thought to
have a good chance for the open seat, and is likely to
Success Elsewhere
be favored by Jewish voters.
In Oregon, polls show Jewish Democrat Bev Stein
The phenomenon of Jews winning political success
running strongly against four other Democrats.
— but not the top state post -- might be explained
Stein has the backing of Emily's List, the Sierra Club by several factors.
and other organizations.
Many of today's Jewish politicians followed a well-
If either candidate goes on to win the November
worn political path by running for a congressional seat
elections it could mark a change for Jewish political
and getting the support of their communities. Jews
aspirations in America.
from heavily Jewish areas received help from their
A
SILVER LINING from page 22
predict a snowball effect as allegiances shift to the
man perceived as the stronger candidate.
Numbers Games
Internal party polls show Netanyahu 15 percent to
25 percent ahead of Sharon among the full Likud
membership, they say.
But independent polls say otherwise. A recent
Ma'ariv poll showed Sharon leading Netanyahu by 44
percent to 35 percent among right-wing voters, and a
poll in Yediot Achronot showed Sharon even further
ahead in the Likud, by 54 percent to 35 percent.
A few months ago, it was a foregone conclusion
among Israeli pundits that Netanyahu would supplant
Sharon as Likud leader sometime before the next nation-
al election in October 2003. That's no longer the case.
Ultimately, though, Sharon's grip on power
depends on two factors largely outside his control —
the Labor Party's continued support for the national
unity coalition and the level of Palestinian terror. If
terror returns to Israel's streets, voters may look fur-
ther to the right. But if a peace process is launched
COOS
5/17
2002
24
Leslie Susser is the diplomatic correspondent for the
Jerusalem Report.
and Sharon follows through, he probably will retain
broad-based popular support.
Labor leader and Defense Minister Benjamin Ben-
Eliezer has made it clear that he will continue to support
Sharon only if he keeps peace options open. Ben-Eliezer
bluntly warned that if Sharon allows the Likud Central
Committee to dictate policy, Labor will leave the coalition.
The Israeli left is urging Ben Eliezer not to wait
until Sharon reveals his intentions. The night before
the Likud meeting, an estimated 60,000 demonstra-
tors gathered in Tel Aviv's Rabin Square calling on
Israel to pull out of the West Bank and Gaza Strip
and demanding that Labor leave the government.
The growing left-wing pressure does not affect
Sharon directly, but it does resound in Labor.
The result is a chain reaction: Left-wingers pres-
sure Labor to leave the government, and Labor lead-
ers, who very much want to stay, pressure Sharon
toward peacemaking.
Matters could come to a head at next month's
Labor Party convention.
There the party will have to decide whether
Sharon is moving quickly and seriously enough in
the direction of viable Palestinian statehood —
which Labor, the left and virtually the entire inter-
national community see as the only long-term solu-
tion to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. ❑
Jewish constituencies, and it became commonplace to
see Jews in the U.S. House of Representatives.
But it's not surprising that federal office offered the
best odds for Jewish candidates. State and local offices
years ago tended to be controlled by the power of polit-
ical machines, so national offices allowed outsiders a
better chance of winning, said Stephen Whitfield, a
professor of American Studies at Brandeis University.
Unlike the Irish in major Northeastern and
Midwestern cities, Jews simply did not have the
numbers to take over existing political machines or
construct their own. Big-city machines were not "the
obvious place for Jews," Whitfield said.
"The decline of the machines makes it possible for
Jews and other groups to seek office without being
beholden to tribal politics," he said.
In the 1970s and 1980s, there was a surge of Jewish
success in politics. A number of Jews wanted to serve
in positions where they could help Israel, experts
believe, and Congress seemed to be the best place.
"It's the avenue for influence in foreign policy-mak-
ing," said David Dalin, an American Jewish historian.
A number of legislators have moved from the U.S.
House of Representatives to the U.S. Senate, includ-
ing Michigan's Carl Levin, a Democrat.
If a representative gains expertise and develops
an interest in foreign policy, that makes it more
likely that he or she could move on to the Senate
and continue that influence.
But foreign policy expertise may not be the first
thing on local voters' minds when they choose a
governor for their state, Dalin said.
Trend Or Anomaly?
It remains to be seen if the number of Jewish candi-
dates for governor this year heralds a shift, or
CANDIDATES on page 26
I
U.S.: Vote Won't
Affect Diplomacy
Washington — A Likud Party vote against the
establishment of a Palestinian state may have
been a propaganda coup for the Palestinian
Authority, but it is not likely to affect U.S.
diplomacy in the Middle East.
"When the history of this conflict is written,
the Likud vote is not going to show up," one
Bush administration official said. He said the
vote does not reflect the view of Israeli cen-
trists, and the American government under-
stands that.
-
The vote "illustrates to what extent Ariel
Sharon pays a domestic price when he makes
concessions," a State Department official said.
"It puts his views into context."
Amid concern in the Bush administration
that Binyamin Netanyahu will unseat Sharon
before the next elections, some say the vote
emphasizes the opportunity the Bush adminis-
tration has to work toward peace before a more
hard-line government takes power in Israel.
— Jewish Telegraphic Agency