Most American Jews disapprove of US military action against Iran, new poll shows

More than half of US Jews disapprove of the US military action against Iran, according to a new poll by a nonpartisan polling firm.

The new poll finds that 55% of American Jews oppose the US military action, compared to 32% who support it. The poll found a sharp partisan divide, in line with polling of Americans in general, with Republicans more supportive of the war than Democrats.

A quarter of respondents say they are “torn because while Iran is a threat to peace, this is not the way to handle it.”

The survey was conducted online in mid-March by the Mellman Group and included 800 registered Jewish voters.

The poll finds that a large majority of US Jews believe US President Donald Trump should have sought congressional approval for the war — including nearly a third of those who support it. And about four in 10 say they oppose the war because it lacks “clear provocation and clear objectives.”

The survey also finds that more than half of US Jews say they are concerned that conducting the war jointly with Israel will “be a long-term problem prompting concerns about the role of Israel and American Jews in US foreign policy.”

A poll released last week found that 61% of Americans overall oppose the war, suggesting that American Jews may be slightly more supportive overall — especially when considering that most American Jews tend to vote Democratic.

The Mellman Group’s executive vice president, Michael Bloomfield, says in a statement that his poll’s results underscore the complexity of American Jewish sentiment about the war.

“American Jews are not monolithic. There can be difference, and in this case strongly held on both sides, with a middle group torn between mixed feelings,” he says. “In today’s political environment, partisanship is a very strong driver of views. That is true across the country across demographics, including American Jews.”