Democrats have let antisemitism “fester” while Republican leadership has “stomped it out,” Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Joe Gruters told Breitbart News.
Breitbart Editor-in-Chief Alex Marlow interviewed Gruters at the 2026 Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) National Leadership Summit on August 31, where the two discussed the upcoming midterm elections and the Democratic Party’s embrace of radical socialist, anti-Israel candidates. Marlow noted that while anti-Israel, right-wing candidates “all got whooped” in the primaries, Democrats are shamelessly backing as many far-left, anti-Jewish candidates as they can.
“These leftist radicals are winning from coast to coast. It’s not just New York City, which surprisingly, New York City with the largest Jewish contingent, has the [Mayor Zohran] Mamdani — probably one of the most antisemitic guys in the country. But these guys are being led by them. They’re winning these campaigns. And yes, at some point, the remaining Jewish voters are going to have to decide if the Democrat Party truly represents them. Does it represent their values? Do they want to continue to support the radical views? Because there’s no such thing as a moderate Democrat anymore,” Gruters said.
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Gruters said Republicans are not tolerating antisemitic voices, and that President Donald Trump and the GOP consider the Jewish community “friends.”
“I think it’s only a matter of time before the rest of them wake up and say, ‘Listen, if we’re going to continue to survive as a population, be successful as a community, we have to go to the party that reflects us,”‘ he said. “…We’re very clear with the direction and the path that we’re following…All Jews have a place here at the Republican Party. That’s why we’re here today, here to build on our relationship with the RJC and try to move forward and try to make that path as easy as possible for those that still haven’t made that jump.”
Marlow remarked that Democrats’ embrace of their most extreme voices provides a “historic opportunity” for the GOP that is also extremely “high stakes.”
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“As the left embraces these ideas that really are completely incompatible with traditional American values, that means that if they win, it’s going to be a lot worse for people like you and me,” he told Gruters. “But it also is very beatable because they could run on fundamental stuff and I think have a lot better shot of winning. So, this has got to be at the top of your mind.”
“I always say this race is about common sense versus radical craziness,” the chairman responded. “I mean, people reject extremism and people don’t want these rabble rousers causing problems, no matter where you are. But I guess the Democrats have embraced it.”
Gruters said he thinks Democrats have allowed more extreme voices to rise up because they believe vocal radical leftists are their best chance at beating MAGA leaders like President Trump.
“But the Democrats, what they want now is they want to fundamentally change the country as it exists right now. This president wants to make sure everybody has the path to the American dream. [Democrats] don’t want the American dream. It’s not Trump Derangement Syndrome anymore. It’s American Derangement Syndrome. It seems like the left wants America to lose. But what it’s really about is they want America to change,” he continued.
“They want America to change to fit the values from where they came from, overseas, and these radical leftist ideas, which is going to certainly not be the America that we all grew up with and what we love,” he added.
Marlow asked Gruters about the GOP playing field ahead of the midterms, as Democrats go through their “civil war,” with their winning side being “guys like Abdul El-Sayed, who says that October 7 was just ‘hurt people hurting people.”‘
“I think we have a chance to defy history in November. I actually think we’re in great shape,” Gruters said. “But I give all the credit to the president for endorsing candidates early in the process, because what that did is we have all these MAGA warriors in place ready to do battle against these radical leftists that they’ve nominated across the country. And we’re not just talking about New York City and San Francisco, we’re talking about middle America. I think they have 40 something DSA [Democratic Socialists of America] candidates running at the federal level, and most of these candidates are nut jobs.”
“I mean, they are completely outside the mainstream. So, as a result, it’s created favorable matchups. In a normal cycle, I would say we probably won’t have a chance, but because the Democrats have embraced this radical ideology, I actually think we have a path to victory,” he continued.
Gruters said that with Republicans maintaining a 53-47 hold on the Senate right now, he is optimistic Mike Rogers (R) beats El-Sayed in the Michigan U.S. Senate race, and he also thinks former New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu (R) has a “good chance” of snagging a victory in the New Hampshire U.S. Senate race.
“We just have to hold the seats that are marginal right now, and that includes Texas, Ohio, Iowa, [and] Alaska. I think we will. If I had to give you a prediction today, I’d say we stay right at 53,” Gruters said. “On the House side, what’s crazy is all the redistricting and movement that we’ve seen over the last three decades, and all the recent stuff that we’ve done over the last year — it’s really made House seats — I actually think we’re in a better position in the House, even though we only have a three-seat majority. When you look at the 435 seats, go to the Cook Political Report, it says there are 19 toss-up seats. You look at those races, we’re doing great in those races. And I think that we have the candidates we need.”
Gruters said Republicans have “the most cash on hand in the history of the party,” and the midterms will “be the first time in modern history that Republicans outspend the Democrats.” He said Republicans need to focus on addressing issues everyday Americans are facing and touting President Trump’s victories in the first half of his second term. He also said the party will focus on galvanizing low-propensity voters with the help of their “secret weapon” President Trump, and hold around 30 rallies around the U.S.
“I think we defy history, and a lot of people are going to be upset. But then when [Democrats] do another self-reflection, a big report on it, they [will] look at the fact that Mamdani, Bernie Sanders, AOC, they’ve been the leaders of this party, they’ve been choosing these radical leftists,” he said. “And I think the American people will reject extremism on November 3.”
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on X @thekat_hamilton.
