Colorado Elects its First Jewish Governor, Also First Openly Gay Man as U.S. Governor
Jared Polis was elected governor of Colorado on Nov. 6, marking two firsts: He’s the state’s first Jewish governor and he also is the nation’s first openly gay man elected governor, JTA reported.
Polis, 43, earned 51.8 percent of the vote, beating Republican Walker Stapleton. Polis had served in Colorado’s House of Representatives since 2009. Before entering politics, Polis made his fortune as a technology entrepreneur.
Polis told JTA last year that his Jewish background has a major impact on his political beliefs.
“I derive a lot of the values that I try to bring into the public sphere from my private faith,” Polis said. “Certainly for me I focus a lot on education, and I’m running for governor to bring [free] preschool and kindergarten to our state and improve our schools, and that’s an important Jewish value.”
RBG Breaks Three Ribs, Is Hospitalized
Jewish Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg fractured three ribs after falling in her office Nov. 7 and was admitted to a hospital the following morning, CNN reported.
She reported pain after going home following the fall and was admitted to George Washington University Hospital.
Ginsburg, 85, has suffered from numerous health issues over the years, including having a stent placed in her right coronary artery in 2014, treatment for pancreatic cancer in 2009 and surgery for colon cancer in 1999.
In 1993, Ginsburg became the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court.
Campaign to Help Owner of Vandalized Jewish Food Truck Raises 12K
More than $12,000 was raised in a crowdfunding campaign to assist the owner of the kosher-style Jew Hungry? food truck in Austin, Texas that was vandalized in late October, JTA reported.
Scott Grossbard began serving traditional Jewish foods out of his truck eight months ago.
While on vacation, the truck’s window and windshield were broken, food was stolen and appliances were destroyed. In addition, coins on the driver’s seat were shaped in the form of an Iron Cross, a symbol associated with Nazis and white supremacists.
“It was ransacked, glass everywhere. And that’s when I saw the cross and the change on my driver seat,” Grossbard said. “I got upset. I started crying. I cried most of the day yesterday.”
Grossbard hoped to raise $2,000 through a GoFundMe page, but that total was exceeded in one day by 74 donors. He said he will reopen with soup and sandwiches while waiting on repairs.
Three in Four Jews Voted for Democrats, Polls Find
A poll commissioned by liberal Israel lobby J Street found that 76 percent of Jews voted for Democrats, while 19 percent voted for Republicans, JTA reported.
Meantime, a CNN exit poll found the margin to be 79 percent to 17 percent.
Jews vote for Democrats more than any other religious group, the Pew Research Center reported, although it noted that 2018’s Jewish Democratic share was down compared to 2006 — the last midterms under a Republican administration. That year, Jews voted Democratic 87 percent of the time.
