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I believe our Republican mayoral candidate is Jewish--Sam Katz.
I'm a non-Jew, and this is just theory, but...
Like with some African-Americans, I sense it's partly a loyalty issue: A Democrat was president during WW2; another Democrat was president during the formation of the State of Israel; a Democrat helped forge the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel; another Democrat helped Israel and the Palestinian Authority start down the path to peace. Not to mention the protections afforded under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, approved by a Democratic president.
Beyond that, Jews have always come across to me as more liberal than folks in other religions (other than the food issues). They seem more engaged in social causes and concerns, which tend to be the bread and butter of the Dems.
I would suspect, based on who I know and what I've seen, that most Israelis would be willing to live side-by-side with the Palestinians. I also suspect they would be willing to let the West Bank and Gaza go without too much ballyhoo. I've always gotten the idea that the settlements in the occupied territories are much more a bastion of the right-wingers over there. Which tells me that maybe the majority of Israelis are center or left of center, which might explain why many Jews here in the States are Dems.
Of course, if the latest peace plan works out well, it could very well turn more Jews into Republicans.
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