Ahead of election, Jewish security groups are monitoring conspiracy theories, Jewish polling sites and foreign interference
Already on alert, Jewish institutions gird for new threats from election deniers and other bad actors
Police at a Jewish community event in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, June 5, 2024. (Luke Tress)
(JTA) — Conspiracy theories. Bomb threats. Anti-Israel protests. Street violence.
Jews have been the targets of all these things this year, as reports of antisemitism have spiked during the Israel-Hamas war. Now, less than a week before Election Day, security analysts say those same factors could put Jews at risk during and after the voting — especially with the race so polarized and so close.
“It used to be that you disagreed with the election results and you were upset about it, but you kept on going,” said Alex Friedfeld, an associate director at the Anti-Defamation League’s Center on Extremism. “But now when the stakes are set so high, that the other side winning is perceived to be a threat to your way of life, to your communities, to your loved ones, to your country, that’s when the threat, the risk of violence becomes higher.”
During the last election cycle in 2020 — a season that saw unrest, particularly in the pro-Donald Trump Jan. 6 Capitol riot — analysts cautioned Jewish institutions to gird themselves for political violence.
This year, they say the rise in antisemitism and new technologies have kept that concern present — even as there are currently no known concrete threats to Jewish institutions or voters. A threat assessment published in October by the Department of Homeland Security cited “the ongoing conflict in the Middle East” and the election as reasons that “the terrorism threat environment in the United States over the next year will remain high.”
Debate over Israel has already tied into election-related violence: Ballot boxes in Washington state and Oregon were set on fire, and devices bearing the message “Free Gaza” were found nearby. It is unclear whether the perpetrator is in fact a pro-Palestinian activist, The New York Times reported.
“The biggest thing we don’t want, is we don’t want people to be paranoid. We want them to be what we call situationally aware,” said Stephanie Viegas, the deputy national security advisor at the Secure Community Network, which coordinates security for Jewish communities. “There’s a lot of distractions in our life, so we try to ask, ‘Hey, really exercise that situational awareness and then know how to report.’”
To that end, SCN is monitoring polling sites in and near Jewish communities and is coordinating with law enforcement and other partners. Its concerns include “swatting” attacks (or false threats meant to provoke a police response), aggressive poll watchers, or sabotage.
The group has prepared a one-pager that recommends a “robust preparedness posture” for Jewish organizations, recommending everything from being in touch with police to staying prepared to quickly shutter a building in case of unrest. Jewish federations in Philadelphia and Atlanta, both located in swing states, are both working with SCN on Election Day security measures.
SCN is also monitoring potential threats from international actors such as Russia or Iran, following warnings from federal authorities. A hacking or misinformation campaign from a foreign actor could spark antisemitic backlash, Viegas said.
In New York, the Community Security Initiative, which coordinates security for Jewish communities in the region, shared with police a list of polling sites at Jewish institutions, including include schools and synagogues, seeking potential extra protection.
“There’s all the security concerns that Jewish sites come with these days. Now we’re adding an extra layer of the contested politics of the election,” said CSI director Mitch Silber. He pointed to recent incidents including an Afghan national charged earlier this month for plotting to conduct a terror attack on Election Day on behalf of ISIS.
Friedfeld said the Center on Extremism, which monitors extremist groups online and shares its findings with community partners and law enforcement, was concerned about risks stemming from anti-Jewish conspiracy theories and potential threats to polling sites at Jewish institutions.
Centuries-old conspiracy theories that claim Jews are able to manipulate and control global events are at play ahead of the vote and can elevate a perception that the election is an existential battle — generating hostility toward Jews, Friedfeld said. He added that people on the far-right and far-left have spread conspiracy theories, with left-wing ones about Israel or “Zionists” gaining prominence this year in light of Israel’s multifront conflict.
“If you think Jews are responsible for a bad outcome happening, you might seek retribution or to punish them for that outcome, and that can present a particular security risk,” Friedfeld said. “Our concern is that someone who is consuming these narratives, consuming this content, that believes that the election is rigged or is fraudulent or is being manipulated by Jewish actors, might decide for themselves to do something about it.”
The idea that the Jews would be to blame for the election result was put forward by Trump in September, when he said that if his opponent Kamala Harris wins, the “Jewish people would have a lot to do with the loss.” Jewish leaders said the comments endangered the Jewish community.
“I think from any candidate, they have an enormous platform. People look to them to be kind of pillars of leadership and any time a candidate uses a platform like that to denigrate a specific group of people or to engage in inflammatory rhetoric, it could potentially lead to security concerns,” Friedfeld said. “People take their cues from these leaders and they’re essentially saying, ‘These people are responsible,’ which is of great concern.”
Lindsay Schubiner, the director of programs at the Western States Center, a civil rights organization that works to foster inclusive democracy, said the group was concerned about violence stemming from the Great Replacement conspiracy theory, which in some versions says that Jews are orchestrating mass migration to replace the white populations of western countries. The theory animated the white nationalist who murdered 11 Jews at a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018.
“We’ve seen this rhetoric increasingly used in the halls of Congress, in the media, on mainstream networks and particularly being promoted by some political actors and by white nationalist and anti-immigrant and other anti-democracy groups and actors as a way of building political power based on bigotry,” Schubiner said. “We’ve seen time and time again that normalizing dehumanizing and bigoted rhetoric paves the way for violence.”
This election also differs from previous votes due to new technologies. Friedfeld said generative artificial intelligence, technology that can create seemingly authentic content based on data, as well as “deepfake” videos that are doctored to present false footage, could help bad actors sow discord. Conspiracy theories from the left are also at a “louder volume” than previous years, he said.
The upheaval after the last presidential election has also stoked concerns. Trump’s efforts to overturn his defeat culminated in the Jan. 6 rally, some of whose attendees then broke into the Capitol in a deadly riot. On Wednesday, Trump sowed doubt about election integrity in the swing state of Pennsylvania.
“I really think it’s the aftermath that’s going to require a lot of attention in securing communities. If you look back to 2020, the chaos started afterwards,” Friedfeld said. “It’s highly unlikely to know who won the night of. That time creates openings where conspiracy theories can fester and spread.”
Richard Priem, the head of the Community Security Service, which trains volunteers to protect Jewish sites and events, said the group was keeping a high alert level that had been put in place for other sensitive dates — the recent Jewish holiday season and the anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023 attack. Priem said he group is not involved in securing election sites — but that he’s cognizant of potential risks, and said people should stay on guard.
“The election and everything around it can serve as a lightning rod for certain groups from both sides of the spectrum and we’re not aware of anything, but we’ve been operating in an elevated alert level,” Priem said. “There isn’t really much else that we feel is prudent to do beyond just being on alert.”
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