Eric Fingerhut, president and CEO of the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), reported that there there were no known issues for Jewish voters across the United States, despite growing concerns over anti-Semitism and uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.
“We are always concerned about extremists who would take advantage of these kinds of transition and thanks to the Secure Community Network (SCN), and our own crisis expertise, we have helped our communities across the country remain prepared, but we have not heard of any specific threats,” he told JNS.
Ahead of the election, the SCN sent out a bulletin to Jewish organizations and communities to make preparations for any possible issues, though did not cite any specific threats to the Jewish community.
“It remains likely that violent extremists will target individuals or institutions that represent symbols of their grievances, as well as grievances based on political affiliation or perceived policy position, which increases the potential of politically or ideologically motivated threats against the Jewish community,” said the SCN.
Fingerhut said he is “enormously proud of all the members of the Jewish community who participated in the 2020 elections as volunteers, as campaign workers and as candidates. As has always been the case, Jews in the United States committed themselves to our civic process, voting and working for candidates of both major parties.”
Nevertheless, Fingerhut added that he hopes the next administration and Congress will focus on a number of issues important to the Jewish community, including aide for nonprofits affected by COVID-19, increased support for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program and passing into law the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism.
