‘Not getting involved’: US Vice President refuses to endorse Netanyahu

JD Vance’s comments follow Donald Trump’s backing of Israeli prime minister ahead of October 27 elections.

United States Vice President JD Vance has declined to endorse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of elections this month, saying he would prefer to stay on the sidelines and focus on midterm polls in the US.

Vance’s comments during an interview on Monday with journalist Mark Halperin came just a day after US President Donald Trump explicitly endorsed Netanyahu.

“I’m not anti-endorsing him. I’m not pro-endorsing him. I’m not getting involved in Israeli elections,” Vance said.

“I endorse American candidates and that’s where I’m focused on is the midterms,” he added.

Vance last threw his weight behind a foreign leader in April, when he backed Hungary’s former right-wing Prime Minister Victor Orban, who lost in a landslide to Peter Magyar.

Over his two terms, Trump has cultivated a close relationship with Netanyahu and his right-wing government.

In his first term, Trump moved the US embassy to west Jerusalem, recognised Israel’s annexation of the Golan Heights, withdrew from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and spearheaded a series of normalisation agreements with Arab countries that sidelined the Israel-Palestine issue.

Since taking office again in January 2025, the Trump administration has continued to sell weapons to Israel despite its genocidal war on Gaza, entered a conflict with Iran and escalated a crackdown on the International Criminal Court (ICC).

For his part, Vance, considered a likely 2028 presidential contender, has become emblematic of growing discontent within the Republican party over Washington’s unconditional support for Israel. That sentiment has deepened with the impact of the US-Israel war on Iran, which has raised costs for US consumers.

While the vice president has said US support for Israel should continue, he has faced scepticism from Jewish Republicans about his commitment to the alliance.

In June, amid Israeli opposition to an Iran ceasefire plan, Vance told Israel: “You can’t just kill your way out of solving every single national security problem that you have”.

He also warned Netanyahu’s cabinet against alienating Trump, calling the president “the only powerful ally” Israel has left.

It remains unclear whether Trump’s endorsement will boost Netanyahu’s Likud party ahead of the vote, with some opinion polls indicating wariness of the US president over his perceived attempts to restrain Israeli operations in Lebanon and resistance to further escalation in Iran.

Polls have shown the Yashar party leading Likud ahead of the October 27 vote. Its leader, former Israeli military chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot, has said he will seek to build an opposition bloc to form a government.