Exercise your right to vote for Israel and the future of the Jewish State!
All American Jews can select who they would like to represent them in the 39th World Zionist Congress, the “parliament of the Jewish people,” which was convened in 1897 by Theodor Herzl. The 39th Congress will meet in Jerusalem this October. By casting your vote, your voice will be heard in Israel, have an impact on the global Jewish community, and support Zionism – the Jewish people’s right to continue building a secure, thriving home in our ancestral homeland. The representatives who are elected to the Congress — a third of them coming from the USA — determine how over $1 billion is allocated each year to support crucial needs across Israeli society and in the global Jewish community. You can cast your vote until May 4th.
The elected delegates include 152 representatives who will fill American seats within the Congress. The last Congress was selected in 2020. I don’t need to tell you how much the Jewish world has changed in five years. This week alone has been extremely chaotic. The challenges facing Israel and the global Jewish community are tremendous. This new Congress has the potential to unify world Jewry, allowing us to come together to support Zionism and the Jewish people in essential ways.
When you vote, you choose one of 23 slates of candidates submitted by various Zionist groups. While voting is done online, paper ballots are available upon request. For those of us in the USA, the American Zionist Movement which represents 46 national Jewish Zionist organizations that reflect an array of ideological, political, and religious views within the American Jewish community, administers the election. There is a $5 fee to vote which goes to cover the operating costs of the election.
You can see the various slates and delegates here and learn a bit about them here. I am still trying to figure out which slate will get my vote. As you will see when you click here, there are many groups that represent more traditional Jewish points of view. While this is expected and a good thing, there are other groups that reflect the Judaism that is important to us. There is a slate that includes the Reconstructionist Movement but given their position on Zionism and the positions of some of the groups they have partnered with, I cannot support this slate. Related to this, I do encourage you to read the Times Of Israel op-ed written by Rabbi Shoshana Hantman, President of Beit Kaplan, the organization I have helped create and direct in response to the anti-Zionism within the Reconstructionist movement here.
Right now, I am considering the following slates:
Mercaz USA — is Zionist arm of Conservative Judaism and was the fourth largest vote-getter in the last election. Mercaz supports an Israel that “celebrates democratic principles, embraces diverse Jewish traditions, and safeguards the rights, dignity and inclusion of all its citizens.”
Kol Israel — which is affiliated with the exceptional pro-Israel advocacy group StandWithUs, which we partner with here at RSBI, and the Zionist youth movement Young Judea – an organization many of us know well. Kol Israel, or “Voice of Israel,” is committed to strengthening Israel-Diaspora relations, fighting antisemitism, and even bringing the Olympic games to Israel in 2048, Israel’s centennial. The slate includes many who have become household names post-October 7, including Columbia University lecturer Shai Davidai and influencer Montana Tucker.
The Jewish Future — advocates for centrist liberal Zionism and include Rabbi David Gedzelman, a graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, a member of Beit Kaplan, and the President and CEO of the Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life. Michael Steinhardt, along with Charles Bronfman, were the founders of Birthright Israel.
Please read up on the slates and VOTE here no later than May 4th!