Philly's religious Jews mobilize for voter turnout amid antisemitism concerns

Bala Cynwyd, PA — Bala Cynwyd resident Rivkah is passionate about voting. 

And that passion stems from being a Jewish woman. 

She's cognizant of how critical voting is as a woman, given women couldn't always vote in the US and how Jews didn't always have political privileges in every country they lived in.

"So why not take part, have a voice?" Rivkah asked. "If we don't speak up, then who will? We have to advocate for ourselves."

October 7 altered this election for her.  

Rivkah spoke to The Jerusalem Post late Sunday afternoon from inside Teach Coalition's Bala Cynwyd office, perched right in the center of town. 

Teach Coalition is an organization within the Orthodox Union focused on securing funding for religious schools. 

It also runs a massive, nonpartisan Jewish voter mobilization effort throughout the battleground states. 

Rivkah's voice caught in her throat as she described how fearful she and her children were of antisemitism following October 7. 

Rivkah said most of her community is voting for Trump, but everyone has to vote for who they think is the best candidate for the Jewish people. 

"I think that as Jewish people, you must prioritize that. Israel is a priority because it affects all the Jewish people around the world," Rivkah said. "So our security, the security of America, also counts on that. Also, we should make sure that we are safe in our synagogues, wherever we are, in our schools."

Voting assistance

When the Pennsylvania primaries fell over Passover earlier this year, Rivkah said she turned to Teach Coalition for help with an absentee ballot. 

When Rivkah volunteers with the organization and calls voters, her job is to get them to vote, not tell them who to vote for. 

Hadassa Levenson Korn, Teach Coalition's Pennsylvania director of field operations, said some people expect the organization to be partisan and aren't interested in making phone calls to encourage voter participation if they have to remain nonpartisan. 

"We're just making sure that everybody voting is accessible to everybody, and everybody has the resources and the help that they need," another Teach Coalition staff member said. "We just are a resource to people. Everybody's getting lots of reminders about voting, and they're getting lots of mail, but many people have questions."

Community members have come into the Bala Cynwyd office saying they want to get out the vote and be a captain at their synagogue to make sure people are registered. Other community members come in daily with questions about their polling places, registration status, or how to fill out their absentee ballot. 

Motivation for voting

Less than two days until Election Day, Teach Coalition staff drew community members to their office with pizza, a bounce house and a craft project for kids, and voter information material for adults, including stickers reading "Don't Kvetch Vote."

Tamar, who has been active with Teach Coalition and her family, sees voter mobilization as a community responsibility and crucial for her children to learn their values and what they stand for. 

Her two teenage sons have handed out flyers and lawn signs and helped get their friends involved. 

"I don't even care much about where they land in terms of who they want to support," Tamar said of her kids, who are not yet old enough to vote. "To me, it's more just learning to think, advocate, and use your legs and resources."

Civic engagement is a Jewish value, she added. 

"If you want to influence outcomes, you need to learn how the system works and use your voice to activate other people," Tamar said. 

Yehoshua, who was leaving the Teach Coalition's party to study down the street at the Philadelphia Community Kollel, said his community overall is most focused on antisemitism this election. 

"Then after that, I think everyone has their own things," Yehoshua said, adding that most people worry about the economy.

His community is also concerned about stability on both sides and is voting for who they feel will make them most safe. 

Yehoshua said that while everyone in his community is "mostly on the same page" about voting for Trump, it doesn't mean people necessarily support him. 

"I think that's unfortunately the reality in many swing states, especially Pennsylvania," he said.

Yehoshua said his rabbi hasn't pushed any one political message, though he indicated he's voting for Trump.