AIPAC says it will stop endorsing, making direct political donations

(Oct. 21, 2026 / JNS)

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, one of the biggest, and most controversial, political givers during the 2026 midterm elections, said on Wednesday that it would stop endorsing candidates and making direct political action committee donations to them.

The group said it would continue its super PAC, the United Democracy Project, which can take unlimited contributions and make independent expenditures for or against candidates.

“Our mission and strategy remain the same,” AIPAC spokeswoman Daryn Sousa told JNS. “Our goal is to build support for the U.S.-Israel relationship. AIPAC members gave more than $90 million directly to candidates this cycle, and that organized, direct giving from our members will continue and increase.”

AIPAC said it would no longer raise money that it then forwards to candidate campaign committees. Its website won’t have a list of endorsed candidates that supporters can click on and make contributions.

That means candidates won’t have to denote specific donations as being raised for them by AIPAC.

Instead, AIPAC will organize its members to give directly to favored candidates rather than act as a conduit for contributions.

“The focus is on our members,” Sousa told JNS.

In addition, many lawmakers have sworn off special interest PAC contributions from all sources, so AIPAC will share its PAC funds with other political organizations rather than candidates.

In a letter to AIPAC members obtained by JNS, the group’s leaders said the new strategy would make the committee more effective in a changing political landscape.

“To win the fight for the future of the country and the U.S.-Israel alliance, we must build a more strategic, consequential and nimble political operation,” the committee said in its letter.

“Endorsements, direct PAC contributions and earmarking will no longer be part of our approach, so we can expand individual giving and utilize new tools to help our friends win,” it said.

AIPAC said that it had helped 290 pro-Israel candidates win their elections while defeating 29 critics of Israel.

“We achieved important victories, suffered hard-fought losses and demonstrated the conviction of our community in one of the most challenging environments in recent memory,” said the letter, signed by AIPAC President Bernie Kaminetsky, President-elect Yehuda Neuberger, Board Chair Michael Tuchin and chief executive officer Elliot Brandt.

But AIPAC itself became a divisive issue during the midterms, putting pro-Israel Democratic candidates on the defensive as their primary opponents accused them of being beholden to the powerful lobbying group.

Many candidates stopped taking AIPAC contributions altogether rather than give their challengers a new line of attack, as an increasing number of Democrats expressed opposition to Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.

Candidates such as Michigan Senate nominee Dr. Abdul El-Sayed railed against the group on the campaign trail. The United Democracy Project spent $31 million to try to deny El-Sayed the Democratic nomination but failed to do so.

And after the United Democracy Project spent $3.6 million in a successful effort to oust Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), he began his concession speech by saying, “I would have come out sooner, but I had to call my opponent and concede, and it took a while to find Ed Gallrein in Tel Aviv.”

In addition, UDP spent $2.3 million in New Jersey against former Democratic congressman Tom Malinowski, trying to win a primary for an open House seat.

Malinowski, who previously ran with AIPAC support, lost the nomination to Analilia Mejia, who accused Israel of “genocide” in Gaza and was elected to Congress.

But in New Hampshire, AIPAC raised money for Rep. Chris Pappas, who won the Democratic nomination for Senate, and for Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-N.H.). Both candidates defeated primary opponents who accused Israel of “genocide.”

AIPAC said it was already looking ahead to 2028 and the next presidential election.

“We assess that the challenges we are confronting will continue to grow in the years ahead, and the 2028 cycle will demand an even stronger commitment by our activists to pro-Israel politics,” the letter read.

“Mobilizing greater resources for AIPAC, pro-Israel candidates and our super PAC is critical to securing the relationship between the United States and Israel,” it said.