Daily Kickoff
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2026
Good Tuesday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we map out some of the possible outcomes of today’s election in Israel, have the scoop on the decision by Rep. Haley Stevens’ former campaign finance chair to vote for Mike Rogers over Abdul El-Sayed in the Michigan Senate race, and look at Indonesia’s warming relations with Iran. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Natalie Portman, Sen. Rick Scott and Danny Danon.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by JI Executive Editor Melissa Weiss, with assists from Tamara Zieve and Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
Today's Agenda
It’s Election Day in Israel. Israelis have until 10 p.m. to cast their ballots, after which polling stations close and Israel’s major broadcasters will carry exit poll results. We’ll be breaking down the initial numbers tonight. Become a paid JI subscriber to be the first to get senior political correspondent Lahav Harkov’s analysis of the results when polls close. More below on what we’re watching today.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is hosting Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani today in Moscow, part of a broader diplomatic effort — which included meetings of Saudi, Pakistani and Turkish security officials in Tehran on Monday — to quell tensions amid concerns that the U.S. and Israel could launch renewed strikes on Iran.
The Information’s two-day WTF Summit kicks off today in Napa Valley. This year’s speakers include CBS News’ Bari Weiss, Anthropic’s Sarah Heck (a day after the company publicly filed for an IPO) and Anne Wojcicki, the founder and CEO of the 23andMe Research Institute.
American Friends of Magen David Adom is hosting its annual New York City gala tonight. This year’s gala, which is hosted by actor Tovah Feldshuh, will honor political commentator Van Jones and Aaron Dahan, whose Caffè Aronne faced threats and vandalism over Dahan’s support for Israel in the wake of the Oct. 7 attacks.
In Fort Wayne, Ind., Sen. Jim Banks (R-IN) is hosting the fifth annual Northeast Indiana Defense Summit. The two-day event kicks off today with a speaker roster that includes acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao, Sens. Dave McCormick (R-PA) and Todd Young (R-IN) and former GOP congressman Mike Gallagher, now head of defense at Palantir.
One Thing to Know
By Lahav Harkov
Israelis going to the polls today are choosing one of over 30 parties running, placing a white slip of paper into a blue envelope, then emerging from behind a screen to drop the envelope into a blue ballot box in front of the polling station committee. As of noon local time, 31.5% of Israelis had voted — the highest turnout since 1973.
The exit polls that come out tonight, however, may not really tell us who won. In 1996, Israelis famously “went to bed with Peres and woke up with Bibi”; the final results, which had Benjamin Netanyahu beating Shimon Peres, were radically different from what the exit polls suggested. We’ll have a good idea of the makeup of the next Knesset by Wednesday morning. Depending on how close parties are to the threshold, a few Knesset seats can still shift as final votes are counted over the following day — or longer, if any parties demand a recount.
Election Day is only the beginning of a long process in Israel, which starts with parties recommending a candidate for prime minister to President Isaac Herzog, and continues with negotiations between the parties. It will be weeks before a governing coalition is formed — if one is formed at all.
The Big Reads
scoop
Former Haley Stevens campaign finance chair and prominent Democratic fundraiser says he plans to vote for Rogers
David Kramer, a prominent Michigan Democratic fundraiser who served as the finance chair of Rep. Haley Stevens’ (D-MI) Senate campaign, told Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod on Monday in an interview and written statement that, despite reservations, he plans to support Republican former Rep. Mike Rogers in next week’s Michigan Senate election. “As we get closer and closer to the general [election], it’s become clearer to me that Abdul [El-Sayed] is certainly not moderating at all, and I think really becoming more extreme and more dangerous and less responsive to the Jewish community,” Kramer told JI, while emphasizing that he remains a “proud Democrat” working to elect other Democrats on the ballot next week.
Rogue allies: El-Sayed’s campaign distanced itself from an ad circulated by anti-Israel commentator Cenk Uygur and an affiliated PAC supporting El-Sayed, as the ad faced widespread condemnation over what critics said was a blatantly antisemitic message. In a response to former Obama administration official Ben Rhodes, Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY), who co-chairs the House antisemitism task force, said that El-Sayed is “full of s***” if he does not more forcefully condemn the ad.
archipelago angle
Indonesia turns to Iran as relations with Israel worsen
Indonesia’s recent expressions of support for Iran and the Palestinian cause have raised questions about whether Jakarta is once again becoming more hostile towards Israel and engaging in closer ties with Tehran, or continuing its diplomatic balancing act, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports.
This week, Indonesia’s ambassador to Iran reportedly reaffirmed Jakarta’s support for Tehran, according to Iran’s official news agency, IRNA, while President Prabowo Subianto called for a “free Palestine” during remarks at an Islamic boarding school in September. Joshua Kurlantzick, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, told JI, “I think we should take [the recent statements] as signs of a somewhat shifting stance and them hedging their bets more strongly.”
med mission
Rick Scott says Israel, Greece, Cyprus trip ‘reinforced’ his critical approach to Erdoğan
Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) told Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs last week that his recent trip to Israel, Greece and Cyprus reinforced his critical stance against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, citing the shared frustration of all three governments with Turkey’s incursions into Greek airspace and its efforts to block an undersea energy cable linking the three countries.
Scott, a longtime Erdoğan critic, made the comments after arriving back in the U.S. from the trip, during which he took part in more than a dozen meetings with American and foreign officials. Scott told JI that the trip “reinforced” his tough approach to Turkey: “I think Americans don’t realize how close war is to this country, especially now as people have hypersonic missiles and nuclear weapons. There are crazy people out there, so it just tells you we need to be focused.”
Allies apart: Differing economic and security initiatives are reshaping regional alignments in the Middle East, raising questions about how the U.S. will manage growing competition between Israel, Turkey and other U.S. allies, experts said Monday at a Hudson Institute panel titled “Mecca Pact vs. IMEC: Competing Visions for the New Middle East,” JI’s Matthew Shea reports.
The Rundown
The rest of today’s original stories from Jewish Insider — full stories, all published on the site.
On Our Radar
● The Live Briefing. Word on the street, clips, podcasts and quick updates — the items we’re tracking all day in our Live Briefing on our app (on Apple and Android) and website.
CNN looks at how prospective 2028 Democratic presidential hopefuls are preparing to ramp up their efforts after the midterms, as former Vice President Kamala Harris continues to weigh another bid; Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has reportedly discussed launching his campaign after the Democratic Governors Association, which he chairs, meets in December, while Maryland Gov. Wes Moore has said he will consider a run after next month…
The Democratic Socialists of America’s National Political Committee delayed a vote on rescinding the endorsement by the group’s Los Angeles chapter of mayoral candidate Nithya Raman, instead passing two resolutions setting up intermediate processes to clarify and address Raman’s position on the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement targeting Israel; in a statement to DSA-LA, Raman said that she “believe[s] strongly that Israel is committing a genocide in Gaza” and that she supports “non-violent protest … including BDS”…
Emirati diplomat Lana Nusseibeh, a late entrant in the race for U.N. secretary-general, welcomed Palestinian support for her bid, writing on X that “throughout my career including at the United Nations, I have worked to advance a political pathway that enables Palestinians and Israelis to live in security, freedom and dignity.”
Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. Danny Danon praised Nusseibeh as a “skilled diplomat” and said he believes she “has the tools to lead the organization” but said Israel would not endorse any candidate for secretary-general…
The New York Times rejected a report by Francesca Albanese, the U.N. special rapporteur for the Palestinian territories, that, while accusing Israel of having committed “mediacide,” claimed the Times was biased in its coverage of the war in Gaza, including advising reporters to be cautious of the term genocide and mentioning sexual violence against Israelis too often…
Harper’s Bazaar interviews actor Natalie Portman ahead of the release of her upcoming thriller film, “The Gallerist”...
Intel is acquiring Israeli quantum-computing startup Classiq, founded by Nir Minerbi, Amir Naveh and Yehuda Naveh, for $2.3 billion in the first big exit for Israel’s quantum industry and the largest quantum acquisition in history…
The New York Times confirmed reporting from Israel’s Channel 12 that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir clashed over Netanyahu’s push for military action against Iran ahead of the Israeli election.
Channel 12, meanwhile, is reporting that Netanyahu is likely to dismiss Zamir if he is reelected; the Prime Minister’s Office dismissed the report as “totally fake news from start to finish”...
The Financial Times looks at efforts by Saudi officials to mend strained relations with the United Arab Emirates — including a meeting between Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan — as Riyadh finds itself increasingly under attack by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen…
In a New York Times op-ed, Saudi Ambassador to the U.S. Princess Reema bint Bandar Al-Saud calls for a more concerted global effort to target the Houthis, noting that the “Houthis have no red lines. There is no limit to what they will inflict on those they call enemies”...
Egypt’s Parliament approved a request from President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi to send defensive military support to Saudi Arabia as it combats Houthi attacks…
Actor Walter Koenig, best known for portraying U.S.S. Enterprise navigator Pavel Chekov in the “Star Trek” franchise, died at 90…
JI Live Briefing · Free preview
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The Live Briefing is JI’s real-time feed — breaking news, notable content from across the web, video clips, images and more, all day. The items above are just a taste.
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Political Paradox: In The New York Times, Micah Goodman reflects on the binary choice facing Israelis as they head to the polls. “Yet where Israelis feel moral clarity, they experience the moral judgment of the West. This disconnect between how Israelis and the West view Israel’s behavior is rooted in a categorical failure. It is a failure that explains why Israel today is the most misunderstood nation in the world. It was caught up in a tragic dilemma, but it was judged as if it were in a binary one. Israel was required to choose bad over worse, but judged as if it chose bad over good.” [NYTimes]
That Ad is Bananas: The Atlantic’s David Frum considers the antisemitic undertones of a recent PAC ad backing Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed that tied the rising cost of groceries to Israel’s actions in Gaza. “‘Don’t they get universal health care too?’ the man asks. ‘We’re paying for that, too, probably,’ the woman responds, at which point the man puts back the bananas. … In the case of the ad supporting El-Sayed, the [candidate] targeted by the false accusation is not El-Sayed’s theoretical opponent, the Republican Mike Rogers — not really. The ad concludes, ‘Mike Rogers is for’ — ironic chuckle — ‘they/them.’ We all know who they are, and they are the real target of the ad.” [TheAtlantic]
Mourning and Memory: In The Washington Post, Columbia University professor Simon Schama considers how organizations and officials critical of Israel reflected on the anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks by highlighting the situation in Gaza. “If you are Jewish, there is no escaping remembrance, foundational as it is not just to Judaism but to the broader sense of communion with the millennia-long epic of our history. … So the contemporary disqualification of mourning for murdered Jews could hardly be more painful. For the legions of Hamas enthusiasts, that is the point.” [WashPost]
Picture of the Day
Former Israeli hostages Keith and Aviva Siegel cast their ballots in the northern Israeli town of Gazit, in the country’s first election since they were taken captive on Oct. 7, 2023.
“To me, voting is about freedom, responsibility and hope for the future of our country,” Keith Siegel told JI after casting his ballot. “After spending 484 days in captivity in Gaza, being free and having the right to vote carries a deeper meaning for me. Freedom is not something I take for granted. It means having a voice, being able to make choices and having a say in the future of our country. I believe our leaders must prioritize human life, dignity, peace and security. When I vote, I am exercising a right that I deeply value and expressing my hope that our children, grandchildren and future generations will live in a country where freedom, democracy and humanity prevail.”
Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images
Birthdays
Inbar Lavi, Israeli actor best known for playing Eve in the Netflix series “Lucifer,” turns 40
MICHAEL TRAN/FILMMAGIC
Gordon Gerson, treasurer of the Pacific Palisades Residents Association
George Z. Singal, senior U.S. district judge in Maine, he was born in a refugee camp following WWII, turns 81
Rabbi Gary Glickstein, rabbi emeritus at Miami Beach’s Temple Beth Sholom, turns 79
Fran Lebowitz, author, actor and comedian, turns 76
Joel Schindler, SVP at MarketVision Research
Robert Goldfarb, president emeritus of Jewish Creativity International
Eric Steven Edelman, counselor at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, he is a former U.S. ambassador to Finland and Turkey, turns 75
Peter Marc Jacobson, television writer, director and producer, best known as the co-creator of “The Nanny,” turns 69
Kenneth Katzman, senior advisor and fellow at the Soufan Center following 31 years at the Congressional Research Service (an arm of Congress)
Robert J. Bond, real estate agent and co-founder and president of Bond Companies
Bryan Glazer, co-owner of the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers and English soccer club Manchester United, he is a son of the late Malcolm Glazer, turns 62
Brad Hoylman-Sigal, Manhattan borough president, he was previously a member of the New York State Senate, turns 61
Matt Drudge, creator and editor of the Drudge Report, turns 60
Shlomo Simcha Sufrin, Hasidic cantor and singer known by his first and middle names, turns 59
Andrea Schlesinger, partner at HR&A Advisors, turns 50
Adam Zucker, sportscaster for CBS Sports, turns 50
Yotam Haber, music composer, associate professor of music composition at Boston University and director of the BU Center for New Music, turns 50
Gideon “Gidi” Markuszower, member of the Netherlands House of Representatives, turns 49
Stephanie Abrams, television meteorologist, currently working for The Weather Channel, turns 48
Elizabeth L. Silver, writer, attorney and creative writing teacher, she has published two novels and a medical memoir, turns 48
Idit Silman, Israel’s minister of environmental protection, turns 46
Alexander Soros, chair of the Open Society Foundations, founded by his father George Soros, turns 41
Elizabeth “Liz” Leibowitz, senior foreign policy and national security advisor for Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV)
Theresa Collington, executive producer of online content at WTSP in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Stephanie Arbetter, content strategy lead at Amazon
Andrew J. Taub, account manager at Amazon Web Services
Ryan Eisenman, co-founder and CEO of NYC-based Arch
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