The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) announced Wednesday that it will discontinue its practice of endorsing political candidates and directing contributions through its political action committee, marking a significant change in its approach to American elections.
According to Jewish Insider, the decision follows a months-long strategic review by AIPAC's board and comes after three election cycles in which the organization directly endorsed candidates and helped raise money for their campaigns.
Despite the change, AIPAC intends to remain active in American politics through other fundraising and organizing efforts. Its affiliated super PAC, the United Democracy Project (UDP), will continue operating.
Since its creation, UDP has spent tens of millions of dollars in congressional races and played a significant role in several primary elections.
In a letter to members quoted by Jewish Insider, AIPAC's leadership explained that the organization intends to place greater emphasis on contributions made directly by individual Americans rather than endorsements and donations distributed through its PAC.
“To win the fight for the future of the country and the US-Israel alliance, we must build a more strategic, consequential, and nimble political operation. We will prioritize increasing direct, organized contributions from individual Americans to candidates - expanding upon our current efforts - and maximizing the emerging political fundraising tools," the letter stated.
“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."
Under the previous system, supporters could contribute to candidates through AIPAC's online portal, with the donations recorded in campaign finance reports as individual contributions made through the organization.
That arrangement will now be discontinued.
However, AIPAC said its staff and local leaders would continue coordinating fundraising efforts with members and recommending donations to candidates “who are worthy of your support".
Currently, AIPAC's endorsement portal lists only incumbent lawmakers, although the organization has previously endorsed candidates competing for open seats.
The announcement comes amid increasing scrutiny of AIPAC's political involvement, particularly from activists on both the far left and far right who have criticized lawmakers for accepting contributions associated with pro-Israel organizations.
Jewish Insider noted that earlier this year, the organization suspended fundraising for 18 House Democrats after they voted to reduce American assistance to Israel.
Following that decision, AIPAC's fundraising portal continued to provide active donation links for 178 Republican lawmakers and 72 Democrats.