Vote Mercaz 2025

The pogrom of October 7th. Rising antisemitism around the world. The Jewish people are facing unprecedented challenges. Now more than ever, the Jewish people need to be united. But true unity isn’t a slogan. It means respect. It means acceptance. It means every Jew from every stream having an equal seat at the table. Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case in Israel for many years, where ultra-Orthodox extremists maintain a stranglehold on matters of religion and state. Who is a Jew. Turning Kashrut into a for-profit business. Even harassing Conservative and Reform Jews at the Egalitarian Kotel.

This spring, there is a simple way that we here at Temple Beth Sholom can make sure every Jew is treated equally in the Jewish state. Elections for World Zionist Congress (WZC), founded by Herzl in 1897, begin on March 10th. The WZC is the only democratic body with representatives of all of world Jewry: all countries, all streams. In these elections, Diaspora Jews like us not only have a voice, but a vote!  And voting is a simple, five minute process that only costs five dollars: a small administrative fee to cover the cost of the election and prevent voter fraud. (Since every payment method can only be used to vote a limited number of times.)  The results of these elections determine/impact who controls the boards of the Jewish Agency, KKL/JNF, & Keren Hayesod, which together allocate billions every year. These are the largest philanthropies in the Jewish world, and how they spend their time and money is in your hands. It depends on your vote.
 
 Voting for the Conservative Movement’s MERCAZ USA Party not only helps secure $5 million for Conservative/Masorti Judaism and its programs in Israel. It helps us fight the ultra-Orthodox monopoly on matters of religion & state in Israel both by preventing ultra-Orthodox extremists from being able to take over the Jewish Agency, its budget and programs. This is important because the Jewish Agency not only has a major role in the aliyah process and therefore, major influence on the question of who is considered a Jew by the Jewish state. The Jewish Agency is also such an important partner for our Ramah camps, youth groups, and more, and preserving that partnership means maintaining strong Conservative/Masorti representation on its board. We can only do that if MERCAZ USA receives enough votes in these elections. Our vote for MERCAZ USA is our way of strengthening the voices of pluralism and equality in the Jewish state.

To vote and learn more about MERCAZ USA, click here.  The TBS Community Code is: 416