A Jewish Statement on Elections and Democratic Principles

 

Dear JCCP/CBT family,

This Shabbat, as we enter the final days before the elections, I want to share a statement by the Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA).   The JCPA is a national network of 90 major Jewish organizations including the Conservative, Orthodox and Reform movements, as well as 76 local Jewish community relations councils and Federations, including our own Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey.  The organized Jewish community in the United States demands free and fair elections, and calls upon our elected officials at all levels of government to protect the integrity of the process against all threats.
 
A Jewish Statement on Elections and Democratic Principles

The bedrock of American liberty is a strong, thriving democracy and an engaged citizenry. The COVID-19 pandemic has altered almost every aspect of the way we live, including how we vote in elections. It’s a longstanding tradition that nonpartisan groups across the spectrum do their part by encouraging their members and the larger community to vote. This year, these non-partisan efforts are even more essential to ensuring that every vote is counted and everyone can participate in our democracy.

We call upon all government leaders, candidates, and elected officials, Democrats and Republicans, at every level and branch of government to recommit to our nation’s core democratic principles and oppose violence emerging from the far right or the far left. In the case of contested or close elections we ask for patience and trust in the system, as we allow for every valid vote to be counted. We ask civic and faith leaders to set a standard of discourse, oppose violence and encourage peaceful engagement in the political process. We must sustain and carry out these ideals and principles in both our words and our actions at this critical moment in our history.


Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Arthur Weiner

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