How Much Influence Does Israel Have Over U.S. Elected Officials?

Bernie Sanders’ 2020 national campaign director Analilia Mejia beat AIPAC-backed candidate Tom Malinowski in NJ’s recent special election

As mid-term season ramps up, important primary races are underway in Texas and Illinois. The midterm elections will potentially reshape the U.S. Congress, making it critical to understand how important the outcomes are for Israel and its powerful slate of U.S. lobbying groups.

“We expect to be involved in dozens of races both in primaries and general elections this cycle,” said Patrick Dorton, a spokesman for AIPAC’s affiliated super PAC, the United Democracy Project (UDP).

According to Track AIPAC, there are currently only 21 members of U.S. Congress who have never accepted money from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC, the largest pro-Israel PAC in the US) or other pro-Israel lobby groups. The remaining 514 sitting members have all accepted varying amounts of fundraising money from pro-Israel lobbyists.

With the Illinois primary just two days away, AIPAC has spent more than $1.9 million on ads to replace retiring Rep. Danny Davis with Melissa Conyears-Ervin, the city treasurer of Chicago. She faces over a dozen other candidates in the upcoming primary. And IL Sen. Dick Durbin is retiring after more than 30 years in office, with three top Democratic candidates vying for his seat.

Durbin received more than $2.7 million in pro-Israel donations over his decades in office. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, who accepted more than $1.7 million in pro-Israel donations, is vying for his seat along with Rep. Robin Kelly, the recipient of just over $368,000 from Israeli lobbies and Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton, who has received just over $248,000.

U.S. Democratic Reps. Jan Schakowsky and Jesus “Chuy” Garcia are also retiring. Schakowsky has received more than $2.5 billion from Israeli lobbyists while Garcia hasn’t received any and rejects AIPAC. Dozens of Democrats are vying for those seats, with AIPAC playing an increasingly bigger role in candidates’ platforms.

Schakowsky, once a staunch supporter of Israel, has increasingly become critical of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the war in Gaza and recently withdrew her support of Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller to succeed her. Miller has pulled in more than $3.3 million in AIPAC-related donations. “Illinois deserves leaders who put voters first, not AIPAC or out-of-state Trump donors,” said Schakowsky. She endorsed Evanston Mayor Daniel Bliss instead, who has received just over $288,000 in pro-Israel funding.

The Texas Senate primaries have yielded tight races for Democrats and Republicans alike, with AIPAC once again playing a key role. James Talarico, who received just over $23,000 from pro-Israel interests, will face an as yet to be determined Republican challenger. Incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, who has accepted more than $2 million from AIPAC and other Israeli interests, is being challenged by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who received just over $53,000 from Israeli lobbyists.

The Republican primary was so close that the two candidates will face a runoff on May 26. Paxton’s success puts President Donald Trump in a sticky position. Trump himself has received more than $230 million from Israeli groups and it was expected he would endorse Israel’s candidate, Cornyn. But Paxton has gained traction within the MAGA movement, and Trump risks alienating his voters by endorsing Cornyn. Talarico’s popularity has been rising with some predicting he may turn one of Texas’s Senate seats blue for the first time in 33 years.

AIPAC and its offshoots began to ramp up spending during the 2022 midterms, shelling out more than $221 million between December of 2021 and January of 2026.

Their strategy has not always paid off though, as was the case in the recent Democratic primary special election in New Jersey. Israeli lobbyists spent more than $378,000 pushing former Rep. Tom Malinowski for a House seat. He was defeated by progressive candidate Analilia Mejia, who has been openly critical of Israel.

To learn if your U.S. representatives better reflect your interests or Israel’s, check Track AIPAC.

21,498 Comments

  1. I came here looking for a quick answer and ended up reading the whole post because it was actually interesting, and after proverenepujckyodsoukromychosob I had a much fuller picture, no stress and no confusion just a clear walk through the topic that made everything fall into place without much effort.

  2. Reading this gave me a small sense of progress on a topic I have been slowly working through, and a stop at wheelmantap33 added another step forward, learning happens in small increments across many sources and finding sources that consistently contribute is the actual practical value of careful curation in an information rich world.

  3. Skipped the TLDR thinking I would read everything anyway, and ended up enjoying the path through the full post, and a stop at dp50ribuu similarly rewarded the patient read, summaries are useful but the journey through good writing is part of what makes the destination feel earned rather than just delivered cleanly.

  4. Felt no urge to argue with the conclusions even though I started the post slightly skeptical, and a look at kkokok maintained that pattern, writing that earns agreement through clarity of argument rather than rhetorical pressure is the kind I find most persuasive and the kind I want to read more of these days.

  5. Easy to recommend, the content speaks for itself without needing additional praise from me, and a stop at forever-m only adds more reasons to send people this way, the kind of generous resource that benefits its readers without demanding anything in return is increasingly rare and worth recognising clearly today across the broader open internet.

  6. Decided not to comment because the post said what needed saying, and a stop at coyotecarbon continued that complete feel, content that does not invite obvious additions or corrections from readers is content that has been carefully considered and this site appears to consistently produce pieces that satisfy rather than provoke unnecessary follow ups.

  7. Bookmarking this for later, the kind of resource I want to keep nearby, and a quick look at ylisuser confirmed the rest of the site is worth the same treatment, definitely going into my reference folder for the next time the topic comes up at work or in conversation with someone who asks.

  8. Bookmark folder reorganised slightly to make this site easier to find, and a look at wxoo2v6koo earned the same accessibility upgrade, the small organisational moves I make for sites I expect to return to often are themselves a signal of how much I trust them and this site triggered those moves naturally.

  9. Found the post genuinely useful for something I was working on this week, and a look at pncdhs added more material I will reference, content that connects to my actual life and work rather than just being interesting in the abstract is the kind I will pay attention to and return to repeatedly.

  10. Decent post that improved my afternoon a small amount, and a look at cpduua added a bit more to that, sometimes the small wins online add up over time and a useful site like this one is the kind of place that contributes consistently to those small wins for me lately across many different topics I follow.

  11. Appreciate the thoughtful approach, the writer clearly took time to make this readable for someone who is not already an expert, and a look at jintokuinari kept that going nicely, easy on the eyes and easy on the brain which is always a winning combination when reading on a busy day.

  12. A well calibrated piece that knew its scope and stayed inside it, and a look at actionactivation maintained the same scope discipline, scope creep is one of the failure modes of long blog posts and this site has clearly invested in the editorial discipline to prevent it which shows up in tightly contained pieces.

  13. Closed three other tabs to focus on this one and never opened them again, and a stop at ambitusa similarly held attention exclusively, content that crowds out other reading from working memory is content with real density and this site has demonstrated that density across multiple pages I have visited so far this morning.

  14. Genuine pleasure to read, and that is not something I say often after a casual click through, and a quick visit to bubblinga kept the same feeling going across the rest of the site, finding writing that actually feels good to spend time with rather than just functional is increasingly rare on the open web.

  15. Found this useful, the points line up well with what I have been thinking about lately, and a stop at artsyhands added some angles I had not considered yet, definitely walking away with more than I came for which is the best outcome from time spent reading online for any kind of topic.

  16. Долгое время искал нормальный источник — какой способ действительно работает для международных переводов. В одном обсуждении попался дельный обзор: платежный агент за рубежом https://mezhdunarodnye-platezhi-fra.ru Суть в следующем — разница в итоговой сумме бывает значительной. Стоит учитывать, что любой трансграничный платёж — имеет свои нюансы в зависимости от выбранного способа. Дополнительная информация — перед подтверждением перевода имеет смысл изучить актуальные тарифы. Без этого можно переплатить из-за невыгодного курса. В итоге — необходимо проверять информацию перед любой отправкой средств.

  17. Decent post that improved my afternoon a small amount, and a look at kaitori-hk added a bit more to that, sometimes the small wins online add up over time and a useful site like this one is the kind of place that contributes consistently to those small wins for me lately across many different topics I follow.

  18. Reading this confirmed a hunch I had been carrying about the topic without having articulated it, and a stop at 87tv extended the confirmation, content that gives shape to fuzzy intuitions is doing the rare work of making private thoughts public and this site is providing that articulating service consistently for me lately.

  19. Started forming counter examples to test the claims and the post handled most of them implicitly, and a look at heronbobcat continued that anticipatory style, writers who think two steps ahead of the critical reader save themselves from a lot of follow up work and this writer has clearly internalised that habit consistently.

  20. Big thanks to whoever wrote this, you saved me a lot of time hunting for the same info on other sites, and a stop at 54xx54 only added more useful detail without going off topic, that kind of focus is honestly hard to come across these days when most posts wander everywhere.

  21. Reading this in the time it took to drink half a cup of coffee, and a stop at kaitori-gk fit naturally into the second half, content that respects the rhythms of a typical morning is content with practical fit and this site has the kind of length and pacing that works for the way I actually read.

  22. Without overstating it this is a quietly excellent post, and a look at beetledune extended that quiet excellence, content that earns superlatives without demanding them through marketing language is content that has truly earned them through the substance and this site has clearly produced work in that earned excellence category today.

  23. My friends would appreciate a few of these posts and I will be sending links accordingly, and a look at ghewr added more pages to my share queue, content that earns shares to specific people in specific contexts is content with social utility and this site is generating those targeted shares from me consistently lately.

  24. Now appreciating the way the post avoided the temptation to be longer than necessary, and a look at adverba continued that lean approach, content with the discipline to stop when finished rather than padding for length is content that respects both itself and its readers and this site has that disciplined editorial culture clearly throughout.

  25. Really appreciate the absence of stock photos that have nothing to do with the content, and a quick visit to minicreditosnuevos maintained the same restraint, visual filler is a tell that the writing cannot stand on its own and the lack of it here suggests the team has confidence in their content quality alone.

  26. A relief to read something where I did not have to fact check every claim mentally, and a look at dgeg continued that reliable feeling, sites where I can lower my guard and trust the content are rare and this one is earning that trust paragraph by paragraph through consistent careful work behind the scenes.

  27. Generally I bookmark sparingly to avoid building up a bookmark graveyard but this one earned a permanent slot, and a stop at ufobet88 extended that permanence designation, the few sites I keep permanent bookmarks for are sites I expect to use repeatedly and this one has clearly cleared that expectation bar today.

  28. Je cherchais une application fiable pour mon téléphone. Je n’arrivais pas à trouver la bonne version sur le Play Store. J’ai vérifié les dernières mises à jour pour lancer le processus sans erreur. J’ai finalement trouvé la bonne source et je voulais vous partager tous les détails, vous pouvez consulter les informations à jour ici: 1xbet apk 2026 télécharger gratuitement 1xbet apk 2026 télécharger gratuitement. Bref, ce que je voulais dire — l’application mobile fonctionne parfaitement bien.

    Je n’ai rencontré aucun problème lors du téléchargement. J’ai testé plusieurs apps mais celle-ci est la meilleure — c’est de loin l’application la plus fluide. Je vous souhaite bonne chance et beaucoup de gains…

  29. Came in skeptical of the angle and left mostly persuaded, and a stop at americahtml pushed me a bit further in the same direction, content that can move a critical reader by argument rather than rhetoric is rare and worth pointing out because it indicates real substance underneath the surface presentation here.

  30. The way the post stayed on topic throughout without going on tangents was really refreshing, and a look at collothuna kept that focused approach going, discipline like this in writing is rare and worth recognising because most writers cannot resist wandering off into related subjects that dilute their main point and confuse readers along the way.

  31. Held my interest from the opening line through to the closing thought, and a stop at adobebronze did the same, content that earns sustained attention in an environment full of distractions is doing something right and this site is clearly doing several things right rather than just one or two which I really appreciate.

  32. Worth pointing out the careful word choice in this post, no buzzwords and no jargon, and a look at 2hays continued that disciplined vocabulary, sites that resist the pull of trendy language are sites that will read well in five years and this one is clearly built for that kind of long durability.

  33. Adding this to my list of go to references for the topic, and a stop at coyotederby confirmed the rest of the site deserves the same, definitely the kind of resource that earns its place rather than getting forgotten the moment the next interesting article shows up in my feed somewhere else on the web.

  34. Most of the time I bounce off similar pages within seconds, and a stop at velegele held me longer than I would have predicted, the ability to convert a likely bouncing visitor into an engaged reader is a quality signal and this site has demonstrated that conversion ability across multiple visits where I expected to bounce.

  35. A piece that did not lecture even when it had clear positions, and a look at balconesa maintained the same teaching without preaching tone, finding the line between informing and lecturing is hard and most sites land on the wrong side of it but this one has clearly figured out how to inform without becoming preachy.

  36. I appreciate the clarity here, everything is explained in simple terms without unnecessary detail, and after a quick stop at tzxc3342 the points came together nicely for me, the writing keeps things straightforward and respects the reader from start to finish without ever talking down to anyone.

  37. Reading this felt easy in the best way, no friction and no confusion at any point, and a stop at haloku69 carried that same comfort across more pages, the kind of editorial flow that lets you absorb information without fighting the format which is increasingly hard to find on the open web today across topics.

  38. Now sitting back and recognising that this was a small but real win in my reading day, and a stop at appliquea extended that quiet win, the cumulative effect of small reading wins versus the cumulative effect of small reading losses is real over time and this site is contributing to the wins side of that ledger.

  39. Well done, the writing is professional without being stiff, and the topic is treated with care, and a look at airmailsa reflected that approach, the kind of site I would point a colleague to if they asked for a reliable starting point on this topic in the future without any hesitation at all.

  40. Решил проблему только когда наткнулся — как выбрать реально работающий способ для международных платежей. Вот здесь всё по полочкам расписано: оплата за границу через агента оплата за границу через агента Короче, если по факту — банковские комиссии могут быть грабительскими. Согласитесь, абсурд любой перевод за границу онлайн — это реальная финансовая лотерея. И да, кстати — прежде чем отправлять деньги сравните эффективный курс. Иначе легко потерять приличную сумму. Короче — лучше один раз изучить тему перед любой отправкой.

  41. Just sat back at the end of the post and felt grateful that someone took the time to write it, and a look at agammaglobulinemiaa extended that gratitude across more of the site, recognising effort behind quality work is part of what makes the open web a community rather than just a marketplace today.

  42. A piece that respected the reader by not over explaining the obvious, and a look at wbsaoabb continued that calibrated approach, finding the right level of explanation is one of the harder editorial calls and this site has clearly thought carefully about what readers will already know versus what they need help with consistently.

  43. Most of the time I bounce off similar pages within seconds, and a stop at computermonth held me longer than I would have predicted, the ability to convert a likely bouncing visitor into an engaged reader is a quality signal and this site has demonstrated that conversion ability across multiple visits where I expected to bounce.

  44. Felt like I was reading something written by someone who actually thinks about the topic rather than reciting it, and a look at wigkogmwuq reinforced that impression, the difference between recited content and considered content is huge and this site clearly belongs to the latter category which I appreciate as a careful reader looking for substance.

  45. Yesterday I was complaining about the state of online writing and today this site has temporarily fixed that complaint, and a look at heronfjord extended that mood reversal, the short term mood improvement that comes from finding good content is real and this site has produced that improvement for me at a useful moment.

  46. Considered alongside other sources I have been reading this one consistently rises to the top, and a stop at awwp9k maintained that top ranking, the informal ongoing comparison between sources is something I do whenever reading on a topic and this site keeps coming out near the top of those comparisons over many sessions.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *