As we head into Super Tuesday, we asked participants in the Jewish Political Voices Project whether they have changed their candidate choices following the first three contests in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. Here’s what they had to say:
JANICE WEINER, IOWA (D)
“I caucused for Amy Klobuchar and still support her. I’m waiting to see what happens on Super Tuesday. I’m angry about the billionaires trying to buy the nomination and unbalance an already unwieldly process, as well as with those calling on the two women to pull out of the race. My idea of progress is not any one of three almost octogenarian white men.”
HARLAN “BUD” HOCKENBERG, IOWA (R)
“Before the Nevada caucus I supported Donald J. Trump and I continue to support him.”
STUART BAUM, MICHIGAN (D)
“Prior to the Nevada caucus, my top candidate was Elizabeth Warren. Now, I am supporting both Warren and Bernie Sanders. I am waiting until after Super Tuesday to see which of them needs my vote most. I have always favored both and am split between them. With Bernie’s performance though, I’m feeling more confident about his chances.”
ARIANA MENTZEL, MICHIGAN (D)
“I continue to be for Amy Klobuchar, but after the Nevada caucus I’m also for Pete Buttigieg, preferably over Biden, Bloomberg, Warren and Sanders, in that order. I haven’t changed my mind because I’m still hoping Democrats will coalesce into a smaller group to better defeat Bernie Sanders and defeat Trump in the general election. I hope they’d consider Klobuchar, given that midwestern states have yet to vote. I also see a path for Buttigieg, since his accumulation of early delegates. However, if it goes by media coverage and polling, then it could very well come down to Biden and Sanders or even Bloomberg and Sanders. In the most proudly Jewish way, I must say, I REALLY don’t want the democratic candidates to dwindle down to two Jewish men. I can’t help but see the anti-Semitism brewing and the history of these Marx and Rothchild-esque figures really riling up the anti-Semites because they will be the ‘enemy’ to Republicans and to re-electing Donald Trump.”
SHELLEY BERKLEY, NEVADA (D)
“I caucused for Joe Biden. I’m still committed to him and I’m waiting to see how he does in South Carolina. Currently, I have no second choice.”
MARK GOLDHABER, NORTH CAROLINA, (R)
“The Nevada caucus has not changed anything for me. As a conservative Republican who finds some of the president’s positions challenging, a pro-market democrat such as Mayor Bloomberg has some potential appeal. If the Democrats select Senator Sanders, who is both a socialist and recently attacked a pro-Israel organization, then a decision to support President Trump becomes much more likely.”
HARVEY “SVI” SHAPIRO, NORTH CAROLINA (D)
“Prior to the Nevada caucus I was undecided, but now I am supporting Bernie Sanders. I decided to go where the energy and enthusiasm appears to be greatest. I also look at how candidates are polling vis-à-vis Trump and Sanders does as well or better than most.”
ANDREW SMITH, OHIO (R)
“Before the Nevada caucus, Joe Biden was my top choice and Andrew Yang was a close second before he dropped out. Now I favor a Klobuchar-Biden ticket, in that order. Amy Klobuchar has risen in my estimation as she has defined herself against her opposition. Biden remains a good choice, but the ticket is more exciting with Amy on top. I will give Bloomberg a hearing; as of now, his advertising is far superior to his personage.”
NINA STANLEY, OHIO (D)
“I am now undecided in my choice for a nominee [having previously supported Pete Buttigieg]. I still like Pete, but I am very confused and just hoping anybody on the moderate lane will stop Bernie Sanders. I am beginning to think it may be futile. I wish a few candidates would drop out so we can consolidate against Bernie. However, I must make it clear, if Bernie Sanders is the nominee, I will vote for him.”
BETH BENDHEIM, VIRGINIA (D)
“I was undecided before the Nevada caucus but now support Elizabeth Warren. She has some solid plans for this country’s future, can clean-up our current mess and will get us on the right path. That said, I will vote for whoever is the democratic nominee, no matter what.”
ALAN ZIMMERMAN, VIRGINIA (D)
“Prior to the Nevada caucus my choices were Elizabeth Warren, then Pete Buttegeig and Amy Klobuchar. I’m still sticking with Warren and Klobuchar, but I acknowledge that Warren’s chance of being the nominee is minuscule, and Klobuchar’s only slightly better. I have soured on Mayor Pete a bit. While I do not mind negative campaigning, what first attracted me to him was his positive vision and his thoughtfulness, but more recently his approach seems to have taken on a petty and nasty tone. In addition, I no longer see any path for him to gain the nomination. I have not changed my view of Bernie Sanders, which is largely negative. While I generally agree with his values, I am turned off by the rigidity of his ideology and his and his supporters’ nastiness to people who do not fall in line. His positions on Israel are concerning for me, but not yet disqualifying, because I am not sure the extent to which we have different views, or simply a different tone. That said, if he wins, I will vote for him in the general election, regardless, because Trump is so horrendous. I still don’t support Biden because I have consistently felt his time has passed and he has not seemed up to the task. However, if he does become the nominee, I could easily vote for him. I think he would be a much stronger general election candidate than Sanders. As for Bloomberg, I do not think he can win the nomination, given all his baggage, so I have not seriously considered supporting him.”
HANNAH ROSENTHAL, WISCONSIN (D)
“I remain undecided [since Cory Booker dropped out]. I do know who I will NOT be voting for, and that is Bernie Sanders. He is a poor looser and may blow up the convention. I know Mike Bloomberg—I lived in New York when he was mayor. I don’t like that ultra-rich can buy a nomination, but he could meet the challenge that Trump has more money and will have more money than any presidential candidate has ever had. My priority is sending Trump away and I will vote for whoever is the nominee, but I hope it will be either Warren or Bloomberg.”
ELIOT STRICKON, WISCONSIN, (D)
“I previously supported Elizabeth Warren and Amy Klobuchar, but I’m feeling a need to get behind Bernie Sanders if he is nominated because of all the thinly veiled anti-Semitic attacks. Anybody with a sense of history can see that ‘socialist’ is a dog whistle for Jewish. The Wisconsin primary is still six weeks away. We’ll see who is still standing. I’m really missing Cory Booker and Kamala Harris.”
