“It’s not a time to taunt and bully the left, but to reach across and make an effort and look at what they’re genuinely concerned about,” Ryan Mermer, former RNC Jewish engagement director, tells JNS.

he never-ending U.S. political campaign cycle means that Republicans “can’t afford to take baby steps” in their efforts to convert more Jewish voters, says the former Jewish engagement director for the Republican National Committee.

Ryan Mermer, a native of Palm Beach County, Fla., who now serves as the Miami Young Republicans Jewish engagement director, told JNS that critical work is already underway, with an eye toward the 2026 midterms and 2028 presidential election.