Antisemitism takes center stage in Florida races featuring anti-Israel Republicans

(JTA) — James Fishback and Dan Bilzerian, two Florida candidates from the Republicans’ rising anti-Israel wing, are awaiting election returns in separate Florida primaries Tuesday. Some prominent GOP figures have sounded the alarm over the two candidates’ rhetoric and conspiracy theories about Jews.

Neither candidate is expected to win, but their results could serve as a test of how their Israel stances play among Republican voters — particularly young voters, for whom Fishback’s campaign has resonated most strongly.

“I think he’s offering us a face of one potential future for the Republican Party,” the Bulwark’s Will Sommer told Vox earlier on in the race.

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Fishback, who is running to succeed pro-Israel Ron DeSantis as governor of one of the country’s most heavily Jewish states, has courted the online far right while strongly opposing U.S. support for Israel.  

He boasts a large online profile that includes interviews with Tucker Carlson and streamer Myron Gaines, who has performed the Nazi salute and promoted Holocaust denial, and has praised the followers of Holocaust denier and white nationalist Nick Fuentes. “I’m all in, I’m rooting for him,” Fuentes said on his show about Fishback. For his part, Fishback has denied accusations of antisemitism and says his criticism of Israel should not be confused for hate speech.

“I’m sorry, but it is not antisemitic to criticize Israel,” Fishback wrote. Fishback has said that the state’s school cafeterias serve “goyslop,” a term considered to be a dogwhistle to the far right. Asked by JTA in March why he made the comment, Fishback replied, “Because it’s funny. Get a life.” Fishback has also said that, on day one as governor, he will suspend a state antisemitism law that he incorrectly says outlaws criticism of Israel.

Bilzerian is hoping to unseat Jewish incumbent and right-wing firebrand Randy Fine in the congressional primary for Florida’s 6th District. A former poker player and Instagram influencer, Bilzerian is unapologetically antagonistic toward Jewish people. He has said he wants to “kill Israelis,” referenced Adolf Hitler in a positive light in a recent campaign video and has repeatedly referred to his opponent, Rep. Randy Fine, as a “fat Jew.” In a TMZ interview, Bilzerian called antisemitism “kind of a made-up term” because “Palestinians are the real Semites.”

Bilzerian has scant support from elected officials, but former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene jumped to his defense after Fine made a comment about Armenians, and referred to him as “Zionist First Randy Fine.”

Fine, who is endorsed by President Donald Trump, the Republican Jewish Coalition and the pro-Israel lobbying group American Israel Public Affairs Committee, has prompted considerable ire on Capitol Hill for comments denigrating Muslims — including comparing them to dogs — and saying that Gazans should “starve away” until the Israeli hostages were released.

The 6th District primary has been marked by inflammatory rhetoric and personal attacks. Fine responded to Bilzerian’s entry into the race by declaring that “we don’t want Armenians to be able to serve in Congress” (Bilzerian is Armenian), prompting anger from Armenian-American groups.

Neither Fishback nor Bilzerian is expected to come close to winning his Republican primary on Tuesday. Fishback has polled between 4% and 13% in surveys conducted across July, far behind the Trump-backed frontrunner, Rep. Byron Donalds. There has been no publicly available polling in Bilzerian’s race against Fine. 

Asked if they had any concerns about Bilzerian and Fishback’s chances of winning, a spokesperson for the RJC told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency: “Nope. Byron Donalds and Randy Fine will win overwhelmingly and decisively on Tuesday.”

But the breakdown of Tuesday’s results may serve as a test of just how well the candidates’ anti-Israel views play among Republican voters. They could also provide a window into where younger Republicans stand; Fishback led all Republican gubernatorial candidates among voters aged 18 to 44, according to the most recent polling data.

One of the Republican Party’s most outspoken critics of right-wing antisemitism, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, is behind an ad campaign aimed at ostracizing Fishback and Bilzerian.

Their candidacies proved concerning enough for The Front Line — a nonprofit launched by allies of Cruz, with the goal of curbing right-wing antisemitism — to pour hundreds of thousands of dollars into attack ads against them, which aired during the World Cup.

In one ad generated with artificial intelligence, the two candidates are shown hosting a party with media personalities Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens, Democratic Reps. Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the pro-Palestinian group Code Pink, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian clerics who cut a giant cake made to look like a crossed-out Israeli flag.

“Is this really what you want your Republican Party to look like?” a narrator asks.

Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, commended Cruz for the group’s work.

“Bravo @TedCruz for modeling moral leadership with The Front Line, working to drive antisemitism out of the GOP,” Greenblatt wrote.

Arielle Klepach, The Front Line’s executive director, wrote to JTA that the group’s work is necessary even as polls strongly favor Fishback and Bilzerian’s opponents.

“We have seen the efficacy of polling this cycle and want to ensure antisemites aren’t elected,” she said.

Fine and a number of politicians from both sides of the aisle condemned Bilzerian — who has spent over $1 million of his own money in the race — after he aired an AI-generated music video with antisemitic lyrics attacking Fine. The song included the question, “Should we revisit that Austrian painter’s opinions?” over a video of Adolf Hitler painting. It also featured the words, “Jewish supremacist, Satan’s creepy little minions,” and depicted horns growing out of the Jewish congressman’s head.

Replying to a different Bilzerian video, Florida GOP Sen. Rick Scott wrote, “This guy is an actual Republican on the ballot. It’s so disgusting.” He added that “Every single Republican needs to condemn” Bilzerian. PJC