By Rachel Holliday Smith – DNA Info
Within a sea of dark blue favoring Hillary Clinton, a small section of Crown Heights went red this election season, throwing support to Donald Trump within about a dozen square blocks, an analysis of polling data shows.
The Republican-majority area corresponds with the Lubavitch Jewish community, centered around Kingston Avenue and anchored by the Chabad-Lubavitch synagogue and headquarters at 770 Eastern Parkway.
The Hasidic community has lived in the area for decades and often votes Republican, according to Yaacov Behrman, a Lubavitcher and local activist who has worked with local Brooklyn Democrats.
To him, the difference between Clinton and Trump for many in the community came down to the latter’s close ties to Lubavitch Crown Heights and his unequivocal support for Israel.
“Crown Heights believes in a strong Israel,” he said. “Even though Clinton also is considered a friend [to Israel] … his campaign pledges in terms of support for Israel are unprecedented.”
A clear connection between the Republican candidate and the Lubavitch community — through his son-in-law Jared Kushner and daughter Ivanka, who visited the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s grave last weekend, and Rudy Giuliani, who is “loved” and trusted by the Hasidic community in the neighborhood, he said — helped, too.
“People feel safe knowing that Trump’s immediate circle has roots in our community and friendships in our community,” Behrman said.
In the 24 blocks at the heart of the Lubavitch community (between New York and Troy avenues from Eastern Parkway to Empire Boulevard), Trump received a majority of the vote in 14 blocks and between 35 and 50 percent in another 7 blocks.
The outcome doesn’t surprise Mendy Raitport, a longtime Crown Heights resident and Kingston Avenue butcher who has run for local office multiple times as a Republican. He said he prayed for Trump to win not because he was a perfect candidate, but because he couldn’t imagine Clinton, who “lied to everybody again and again,” in the White House.
“Would I always vote for him? No. But at this time in history, I think he’s the best person for the job,” he said.
The returns in the Hasidic area of Crown Heights are in sharp contrast to the rest of the neighborhood, where support for the Republican was nearly non-existent.
Most other election districts in the area reported single-digit returns for Trump and, on one block — between Dean and Bergen streets and New York and Nostrand avenues — not a single person voted for him; 229 out of 230 voters on the block chose Clinton, according to the data. The 230th person chose the Green Party’s candidate, Jill Stein.
Click here for the full interactive map showing the complete breakdown of votes, block-by-block.
The map actually shows a lot more Hillary support in the heart of crown heights. Only a few of the crown heights blocks are trump, and narrowly so by 10 or 15%.
Many other blocks in the heart of the Jewish neighborhood and beyond are actually either Hillary or very evenly split.
What we need is a real frum conservative like Ryan or someone respectable to stand up to the neo-nazi semi-conservative mishugas that elected the tyrant.
Time to promote Sheva Mitzvos and Hashem and not fascism or corrupt liberals.
39% of New York voted Trump imagine if it was a real conservative I think it’s time people start registering as Republican
# to 4 in Williamsburg Satmer people they voted for Hillary Clinton the rest of the community Williamsburg I think they voted for Donald Trump but I do know that Satmer voted for Hillary Clinton and another thing a new Square they also voted for Hillary Clinton as well
Not a stera – by gaining influence & funding we can also gain the power to publicize A Moment of Silence & Sheva Mitzvos etc. For the moment it is still very much a goshmious world & we should be aware and active in ALL ways to be a light unto the nations.
Hay there! : ) I just wanted to mention that for people called away on urgent business or stricken by sudden illness there is always the Emergency Absentee Ballot
The graph is not “guesswork on surveys and exit polls”, it is the actual numbers from the actual votes cast. These are the exact numbers of votes that were cast by the people living in each ED.
As Gombos polls correctly reported
Most Jewish areas (Boro Park, Willamsburgh) were also dominated by Trump votes
Why are you so focused on “influence & funding”. What about being a “light unto the nations” by proudly supporting the party (Rs) whose policies are far more in line with those of Hashem in His Torah, and in the sheva Mitzvos bnei Noach?
to begin an actual Voter Registration Drive here in Crown Heights. We have hundreds, if not thousands of eligible young voters who learn or are on shlichus out of town / out of the country and are not home on various official election days. They should all be aggressively registered over Pesach, the summer, Tishrei or whenever else they are home so that they may participate in voting thru absentee ballots. There are also certainly other community residents who may not yet be registered and should be. Also, other neighborhoods provide transportation to the polls for those that need help,… Read more »
There’s no way to know who someone voted for, since his name isn’t on his ballot, so this whole thing is guesswork on surveys and exit polls.