Rising antisemitism sees some Jewish voters turn toward Conservatives this election

Jodie Katz has ne'er volunteered for immoderate governmental campaign. This clip around, though, she feels she has nary choice. On a acold windy greeting successful aboriginal April, she devoted hours to dropping disconnected tract signs for her Toronto riding's Conservative candidate, Karen Stintz.

"I americium a put-your-money-where-your-mouth is benignant of gal," said Katz. "The Liberals cannot triumph this riding, the Liberals cannot triumph the election."

Katz, primitively from Ottawa, has ne'er voted Conservative before. She says she has mostly voted for the NDP, with immoderate Liberal votes arsenic well. 

But this predetermination she says she is supporting the Conservatives based connected 1 issue: the party's enactment for the Jewish assemblage since Oct 7, 2023, and a caller survey suggests she's not alone. 

"For maine and for the ample bulk of my friends, who are successful the Jewish community, it is simply a one-issue election," said Katz. 

"The contented is the pervasive antisemitism that the Liberal Party specifically person failed america on, they person not been capable to support us."

The numbers amusement antisemitism is connected the emergence successful Canada. Statistics Canada reports a 71 per cent summation successful hatred crimes targeting the Jewish colonisation betwixt 2022 and 2023 — with the largest summation seen after the Oct. 7 attacks and the consequent warfare betwixt Israel and Hamas.

Many Jewish time schools and synagogues person had to summation information astatine their campuses. Synagogues person been firebombed and vandalized. One Jewish girls schoolhouse successful Toronto was changeable astatine 3 abstracted times. 

It's each near Katz rattled. 

"I americium legitimately, legitimately afraid," said Katz. She recalls her ain acquisition astatine the Walk for Israel past June. 

"On either broadside of the thoroughfare are masked individuals with keffiyehs and shouting horrible, horrible slurs against Jews, not Israelis, Jews. I'm a Jew and my son, my 11-year-old son, was shaking."

WATCH | Rising antisemitism large contented for Jewish voters this election: 

Shift toward Conservative, survey suggests

Sociologist Robert Brym has studied trends among the Jewish assemblage successful Canada for overmuch of his vocation and consulted past twelvemonth connected a survey by polling steadfast Leger, which recovered the emergence successful antisemitism is simply a apical contented for Jews this predetermination cycle.

"I recovered that the No. 1 contented successful communal with each Canadians was the economy, aft all, Canadian Jews are Canadians and they're disquieted astir jobs and astir the outgo of living. The 2nd one, however, not acold behind, was antisemitism," said Brym, a prof emeritus of sociology astatine the University of Toronto. 

The canvass of 588 Canadian Jews, conducted from Aug. 28 to Sept. 16, found a displacement successful governmental enactment since a akin survey successful 2021. Liberal Party support, which was ascendant successful 2021, fell from 39 per cent to 26 per cent. 

Meanwhile, enactment for the Conservatives jumped from 36 to 55 per cent. 

While those trends were akin to the wide colonisation implicit that time, the survey notes the displacement among Jews was much pronounced.

Brym believes that fearfulness amid rising antisemitism is down the community's evident displacement distant from the Liberals to the Conservatives this election. 

"The Jewish assemblage feels that the Conservative Party is much supportive and operating with a heavier manus connected these kinds of outbreaks of hate, so, that's besides encouraged the assemblage to determination toward the Conservatives," said Brym.

'He told america that helium was with us'

Rabbi Jarrod Grover of Beth Tikva Synagogue successful Toronto has experienced the emergence of antisemitism archetypal hand. His woman works astatine Bais Chaya Mushka, the North York girls schoolhouse that was changeable astatine 3 times. He said, among his congregants, a displacement to enactment the Conservatives is thing he's noticed.

"There's a batch of voices successful the assemblage who consciousness that arsenic a Jew you person to ballot Conservative and it's astir treasonous not to," said Grover. 

"I deliberation determination has been a marked quality conscionable successful presumption of the effort that the Conservative Party person made to attraction and scope retired to the Jewish assemblage connected their issues compared to different governmental parties. So again, that's gonna construe to votes, there's nary question."

The synagogue's ritual director, Irv Kirshenblat, agrees that a caller sojourn Conservative Leader Pierre Pollievre made to the synagogue went a agelong mode to swaying his vote.

"He told america that helium was with us, not lone that helium was with us, but that helium felt our pain," said Kirshenblat. 

"Whereas, galore of the different governmental candidates whitethorn person been speaking the words, but not walking the line, truthful to speak."

Courting the Jewish voter

Ellin Bessner hosts the biggest Jewish podcast successful Canada, the regular podcast of The Canadian Jewish News. Since the Oct. 7 attacks, she has interviewed hundreds of Canadian Jews. She agrees she sees a displacement among the assemblage towards the Conservatives, and thinks it's nary accident.

"Pollievre's radical person been courting us, the Canadian Jewish News and Jewish synagogues, Jewish schools, they've been having large rallies, the Liberals person not been courting the Jewish voter," she said.

Bessner besides sees thing other among the Jewish assemblage successful this predetermination rhythm she says is new.

"I telephone it 'muscular Judaism,'" she said. "It's mobilization similar ne'er earlier successful the citizens, young people, successful the assemblage students, successful precocious schoolhouse students, they are marching, they are petitioning, they are large and that is thing that our assemblage hasn't seen before."

Ben Mogil lives successful midtown Toronto and hasn't been politically progressive before. This clip is different. He precocious held an lawsuit for the Conservative campaigner successful his riding, Don Stewart, contempt being a Liberal elector astir of his life. He says however helium is present experiencing being Jewish successful Canada has had an interaction connected him.

"Certainly, you know, astatine my kids' schools, determination is rather a batch of information present and then," helium said. 

"I deliberation there's a batch much radical that are voting Conservative that are Jewish than determination ever person been before."

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