It was just a few weeks ago that The New York Observer was describing the battle for the World Jewish Congress presidency as a silver-spoon slugfest between Ron Lauder and Matthew Bronfman.

Well, with the election just a few weeks away, the presumed rivals announced today that they are running … together!?!

See the full statement after the jump.

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Lauder, Bronfman Join in Bid to Lead World Jewish Congress into the Future

Jerusalem (May 30, 2007) Ronald Lauder and Matthew Bronfman have united in a bid to lead the World Jewish Congress into the future. The two announced today that they will run as a ticket with Lauder seeking the WJC’s presidency and Bronfman seeking the WJC’s Governing Board chairmanship at interim elections being held during the WJC’s Governing Board meeting in New York on June 10.

“We are combining our efforts to guarantee that the World Jewish Congress remains the strongest representative organization of Jewish communities around the world,” Lauder said. “We will continue reform of the organization, assure the WJC’s financial solvency, and expand its operations to better pursue its mission.”

“Looking forward to the future we will work side-by-side to advance the WJC’s critical mission on behalf of Jews everywhere,” Matthew Bronfman said. “We will achieve this by working directly with the communities in a process marked by transparency and integrity.”

The announcement earned praise from retiring WJC President Edgar M. Bronfman who said: “I congratulate these two distinguished servants of the Jewish people on their united commitment to lead the World Jewish Congress to a promising future.”

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