We were fascinated to read your article on the important report by the Institute for Jewish Policy Research (JPR) on Jewish voting patterns in the UK (British Jews turn to Greens and Reform UK as support for main parties drops, 20 November). This demonstrates that growing numbers of Jews are deserting the Labour and Conservative parties in favour of the Green party and Reform UK.
As JPR points out, there is no symmetry here. The turn to Reform among Jewish voters is half the size of the growth in support for the party within the population as a whole. On the other hand, support for Greens among Jews is 900% the size of the turn to the Green party overall.
In this context, we question the characterisation of support for Greens among Jewish people as “paradoxical”. According to the report, “domestic priorities and progressive values outweigh foreign policy concerns that touch directly on Israeli governmental and military behaviour”. Yet as JPR itself demonstrates, the Green surge is a phenomenon of younger Jews (19% of 30-49-year-olds; 22% of 16-29-year-olds). This is the age group in which more Jews are turning away from Zionist identification: 25% of non-Zionist Jews and 62% of anti-Zionist Jews now support the Green party. This suggests that it is because of Green policies on Israel and not despite them that the party is appealing to many.
While the mainstream of the community and its leaders remain committed to the Conservative and Labour parties, a large and growing minority, especially among the young, is finding a new voice and new forms of political identification. There is still a tendency in public debate to imagine Jewish people as single community, united in its support for Israel. As JPR’s research demonstrates, this is not the case.
Prof David Feldman, Dr Ben Gidley and Dr Brendan McGeever
Birkbeck Institute for the Study of Antisemitism, Birkbeck, University of London
