You read that right. I’m running for congress –   The 37th World Zionist Congress.  And you can help me get there. Voting ends March 11. Your vote really matters.  (And thank you to all who voted in yesterday’s Super Tuesday across the nation!)

I just posted a short vid about it – You can watch it HERE in Hebrew and HERE in English.

Pease read more here for why this matters so much and how you can make a big difference.

I just got back from a 24 hour trip to Israel – privileged and proud to vote in the Israeli elections, and to spend a few precious hours with my mother, family and friends. I even got to take a walk among the springtime almond blossoms. That alone was worth the flight.

Although I left Israel late last night crestfallen about the election results thus far, I am more determined than ever to keep working hard for the vision and reality of an Israel I love and believe in, an Israel that is a home of justice and dignity for all.

That’s why I joined the Hatikvah slate – the most progressive and diverse platform running for the World Zionist Congress – with a few Lab/Shul folks on board and many leaders, artists and activists. Hatikvah, like the name of Israel’s anthem, means The Hope. Their work is that of  fighting for equality, hope and human rights in Israel and all over the Jewish world.

Founded by Theodor Herzl in 1897, the World Zionist Congress, nicknamed  the Parliament of the Jewish People, is made up of 500 delegates from all over the world who are elected for five years. The US gets 29% of votes, Israel gets 38%, the rest divided by others worldwide. Fifteen American platforms are competing for 152 seats total. The stakes are hight: each year the congress makes critical decisions regarding policy and the distribution of billions of dollars.

With our voting might, we ask ourselves where we would like to see five billion dollars spent over the next five years.

I want to see this money spent on radical religious pluralism and civic equality for all, LGBTQ+ pride and environmental courage, on dialogue and not on division.

Zionism is a complex concept in today’s marketplace of ideas but along the others leaders I am honored to run with who believe in the dream of our ancestors and the vision of justice, equal rights and dignity that is yet to be lived out loud in Israel, Palestine and all over the world. 

Voting is simple.

To vote you need to self-identify as Jewish, spend five minutes, submit $7.50, and sign a declaration that affirms the Jerusalem Platform. This may be a lot to ask of some of us – but I hope the significance of this moment, this moment at which the progressive voice has the change to increase power and presence.

With so much uncertainty around our political future, in the US, Israel and abroad – this is one vote that definitively and decisively grants those working to bring about positive change the power necessary to do so.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me with questions, feedback, and support.

Thank you for VOTING RIGHT NOW  for a better future – for all.

Amichai Lau-Lavie