Pittsburgh Israel-boycott referendum is dead after DSA declines to defend it in court

(JTA) — The Pittsburgh group behind a ballot referendum that would compel the city to boycott Israel said it won’t defend the measure against multiple legal challenges, ending its longshot bid to make November’s ballot.

The Democratic Socialists of America chapter announced it would not defend the effort on Sunday night, the evening before a scheduled court date for multiple challenges to the referendum. The local Jewish federation, several rabbis and the city controller all challenged the referendum in court, while both of Pennsylvania’s US senators condemned it and a staffer in the mayor’s office resigned after revealing she had signed it.

“We have made the difficult but strategic decision to withdraw our petitions so that we can come back stronger, more experienced and fully ready to continue fighting for a free Palestine with all avenues available to us,” the Pittsburgh DSA chapter tweeted. 

Claiming that “politicians and interest groups” are “afraid of this referendum because they know if it goes to a vote, it wins,” the group added, “Unfortunately, today their efforts to push us off November’s ballot succeeded.”

Jewish groups celebrated the move as a victory. 

“The DSA’s proposed referendum initiative posed a grave threat to the core values and financial viability of the Jewish community, as well as to the entire city of Pittsburgh’s ability to provide vital city services in a lawful manner,” the federation said in a press release. 

DSA withdraws Pittsburgh referendum

It added, “In the end, it was their antisemitic and anti-Israel agenda that led to the referendum initiative’s defeat.”

The referendum would have added a clause to the city charter “prohibiting investment or allocation of public funds, including tax exemptions, to entities that conduct business operations with or in the state of Israel unless and until Israel ends its military action in Gaza, fully allows humanitarian assistance to reach the people of Gaza, and grants equal rights to every person living in the territories under Israeli control.”

The federation described the referendum efforts as the first time an “anti-Israel boycott and divestment proposal at the municipal level” would have faced a popular vote.

The DSA-backed organizing group, No War Crimes On Our Dime, submitted ballot signatures for approval earlier this month, but the federation quickly challenged the validity of the signatures, claiming they actually fell far below the required signature threshold. Four local rabbis from Reform, Conservative and Orthodox congregations joined the challenge.

Both the Jewish groups’ challenge and a separate legal challenge, from Pittsburgh City Controller Rachael Heisler, also maintained that the referendum violated state law that prohibits the government from doing business with companies that boycott Israel. Both challenges were scheduled to be heard Monday before the DSA dropped out.

In backing down, the DSA maintained that it had gathered enough signatures to make the ballot and framed its decision as a “strategic withdrawal, and by no means a loss.” It said it would continue pressing for its ultimate goal.

“This isn’t about us, and at the end of the day this isn’t about ballot access — this is about pressuring for a ceasefire and a Free Palestine,” the group wrote.