The Toronto campaign office of Progressive Conservative Don Stewart stands closed, on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 after the previous night's win in the Toronto-St.Paul's Federal byelection. An organizer behind an effort to get Jewish voters in a Toronto byelection to vote against the governing Liberals suggests it was the rise in antisemitism which brought people to the polls, more so than views towards Israel and the conflict itself.
Both Liberals and Conservatives have acknowledged that the crisis in the Middle East was a factor in a riding where one in six residents identifies as Jewish. Households received a letter signed by Melissa Lantsman, a deputy leader for the party and a Toronto-area MP who is Jewish herself. Residents have seen violence at community hubs, Kirsch noted, including a shooting at a Jewish school. And they are watching as similar acts unfold elsewhere in the country, including in other major cities like Montreal. "We can debate the lawful definitions of hate, but what we can't debate is that it's intimidating for the Jewish community, and I think that we, the Jewish community, did not feel supported in the way that they felt they should have been from this government.
Sue Goldstein, a resident who's involved with Independent Jewish Voices Canada organization, questioned the notion that the byelection result could be explained by a shift of Jewish voters towards the Conservatives. Still, she said she thinks many Jewish people with progressive views have been disappointed in the government’s response to the conflict.
The war was triggered by a Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7 that killed some 1,200 people, with militants abducting about 250 others. Israeli ground offensives and bombardments have killed more than 37,600 people in Hamas-controlled Gaza, according to the territory's health ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count.