Many Mizrahi Jews weren’t seen as being “Israeli ... It is in the East that the Jewish people began, and where today in Israel our peoplehood is maintained and continues to thrive.

“Knowing more accurately where exactly Mizrahi Jews are still facing barriers and ... ethnic identity can be a potent factor in how people vote — and how politicians campaign.

Some people in the U.S. identify as Mizrahi Jews, and there have been Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews in the U.S. since the Colonial period. Ashkenazi Jews make up the majority of American Jews today.