After the loss in Michigan: AIPAC considers investing again against Abdul El-Sayed
The AIPAC political committee tried to promote Representative Haley Stevens in the primaries, but El-Sayed, a harsh critic of Israel who supports a full arms embargo, won by a small margin and with only a relative majority.
AIPAC is considering investing tens of millions of dollars in another attempt to defeat Abdul El-Sayed, after having already spent 32 million dollars without success in the Democratic Senate primaries in Michigan. According to the "New York Times", the pro-Israel organization is currently examining the possibility of supporting Republican candidate Mike Rogers in the general elections in November.
The AIPAC political committee tried to promote Representative Haley Stevens in the primaries, but El-Sayed, a harsh critic of Israel who supports a full arms embargo, won by a small margin and with only a relative majority. AIPAC spokesperson Daryn Souze stated that "our members are determined to ensure that voters reject Dr. El-Sayed and his radical, anti-Israel agenda in November." However, the political committee's spokesperson, Patrick Dorton, clarified that no official decision has been made yet. According to reports to the Federal Election Commission, the organization had about 80 million dollars in its coffers at the end of June.
Direct support for a Republican in a tight race in a key state would be an unusual change for AIPAC, which has presented itself for years as a bipartisan organization and only began investing in federal elections in 2022. Until now, the group had only intervened in one general race between a Democrat and a Republican, when it spent about 1.2 million dollars against Congresswoman Summer Lee from Pittsburgh, who won easily.
Rogers has repeatedly presented himself as a staunch supporter of Israel, while El-Sayed has placed his opposition to Israel at the center of his campaign and declared that he would vote to end funding for the country. In his victory speech, El-Sayed tried to appeal to Jewish voters as well.
"My commitment to your safety, to Jewish safety, is the same commitment I have to the safety of my daughters," he said.
At the same time, he continued to attack AIPAC and called for it to "burn its money" in the general elections as well.
Among AIPAC supporters, there have been calls to intensify the fight. Sam Markstein, the political director of the Republican Jewish Coalition, said that "the days of being told to shut up and be nice are over," and added: "We will double our efforts and do what is necessary to win." The discussion is taking place against the backdrop of a shift in the Democrats' attitude toward the organization. A recent poll showed that almost half of Democrats in Michigan hold a negative view of AIPAC, compared to only 12 percent who view it positively. At the same time, candidates critical of Israel have won in primaries in New York, California, and Illinois.
At the same time, AIPAC is considering assisting Republican Senator Susan Collins in Maine as well, but her associates estimate that it will not invest in both races simultaneously this coming fall. On the other hand, J Street president Jeremy Ben-Ami warned that supporting Rogers would be "political malpractice," and argued that every additional dollar that AIPAC invests "deepens the problem" and distances Democratic voters from supporting Israel.
