November 4 is Election Day, with early voting beginning tomorrow.
In this highly consequential moment for our community, civic engagement can’t be someone else’s responsibility. The stakes are simply too high as we face a host of pressing challenges, from threats to our security to the normalization of antisemitism.
Gone are the days when it was acceptable not to know the name of our local state senator or city council member. In today’s climate, we must become more active participants in every aspect of the local political process.
And it starts with one simple act: showing up to vote. There are 732,000 potentially eligible Jewish voters in New York City. Do not doubt the impact of our collective voice.
To that end, UJA has invested approximately $1 million in recent months to strengthen grassroots voter engagement — supporting more than 100 community partners and mobilizing 1,500 volunteers to reach over 380,000 Jewish New Yorkers.
Together with Jewish Voters Unite, we’ve integrated “Get out the vote” efforts into more than 750 events across the city. Volunteers have led dozens of late-night phone banks, canvassing drives outside kosher supermarkets, and registration tables at concerts and community gatherings.
Just a few examples: Shorefront Y teens hosting phone-banking nights and this Sunday’s “We Count” concert; the Boro Park JCC running drives in schools and shuls; the Kings Highway Beautification Association organizing registration at more than 50 Sephardic community events; and Project Lead in Queens registering voters at… a wedding(!).
The outcome so far: more than 18,000 new voter registrations.
The critical need for us to become more civically engaged is also why we recently launched UJA Action, empowering our community — at scale — to connect directly with elected officials at the city, state, and federal levels about our values and concerns. Elected officials had repeatedly told us that, in contrast with other groups, they don’t hear often enough from Jewish voters. UJA Action aims to reverse this trend. When you simply enter your address, the platform identifies your representatives and allows you to send them a personalized email with just a few clicks.
An example of UJA Action’s impact: Last year, we led a campaign urging New Yorkers to contact their representatives to support stronger protections against discrimination and antisemitism on campus. In August, Governor Hochul signed a law requiring every public and private college and university in New York to appoint a Title VI coordinator. These officials will oversee antibias training, investigate discrimination complaints, and ensure students know their rights. The governor publicly acknowledged UJA and our partner JCRC-NY for our important role in helping secure this legislation.
More broadly, UJA is the principal funder of the JCRC-NY and also maintains a significant in-house government relations team so that our community’s voice is heard at every level of government.
Back to the upcoming election: As a 501(c)(3) public charity, UJA cannot specifically endorse or oppose candidates. Others in our community can and have, with great eloquence.
But this much we can say: It’s never been more important to vote. And if we don’t show up, we don’t get to complain about the result.
If you haven’t registered yet, you have until tomorrow. (And yes, we know your inbox has already been full of UJA reminders.) Tomorrow is also the last day to request an absentee ballot — don't wait.
Voting for the leaders who will guide the future of our five boroughs — with oversight of the Police Department, the Department of Education, and other institutions that affect everyday life — is not just a civic duty. It’s an expression of our historic commitment to this extraordinary city we call home. A city unlike any other precisely because it has been shaped in so many ways by the largest Jewish community in the world.
Let’s go out and vote.
Shabbat shalom