Press Releases

U.S. JEWS VOTING DEM IN CONGRESS MIDTERMS YET QUESTION WHAT PARTY STANDS FOR, ESP. ON ISRAEL JEWISH R ’ s MOST ID ’ d AS PRO-ISRAEL, NEW POLL SHOWS United in Support of Israel ’ s Right to Exist as Jewish Homeland But Mixed Concepts of Zionism Jews see too much Israel criticism playing into antisemitism While most Jews feel too many Israel supporters use antisemitism claims to avoid legitimate policy debate WASHINGTON – The latest Jewish Electorate Institute (JEI) poll shows American Jews are voting heavily Democratic in the midterm election for Congress. At the same time, Jews have questions about what the Democratic Party stands for, particularly on Israel. Jewish Republicans, on the other hand, are most identified as being pro-Israel, which is also one of their biggest image advantages over Democrats. Meanwhile, amid debates in the Jewish community over Israel, war in Iran and election politics, American Jews are united in support of Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state and homeland for the Jewish people. However, there are mixed signals over the concept of Zionism, with the majority seeing Zionism favorably, but only a third calling themselves Zionists. There is also concern about how antisemitism is becoming a part of the increasingly heated discussions over U.S.-Israel issues, by both sides. A large majority of U.S. Jews see too many critics of Israel using language about Jews that play into antisemitism, whether intended or not. At the same time, a majority of Jews feel too many supporters of Israel use claims of antisemitism to avoid legitimate debate over policy. These analyses are based on the final release of the findings of a national survey of 800 Jewish registered voters, with an oversample to yield 600 Jewish women. The survey was conducted for JEI by The Mellman Group using a high-quality online national panel from March 13-23, 2026. The margin of error for the sample as a whole is +/- 3.5% at the 95% level of confidence (higher for subgroups). Previous JEI analyses and releases centered on U.S. Jews’ pro-Israel identity and their criticism of the government, support for pro-Israel spending in the primaries and the popularity of AIPAC, DMFI and J Street. Also, on what American Jews would likely discuss at the Passover seder tables.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA CONTACT: info@jewishelectorateinstitute.org TUESDAY, APRIL 7, 2026 202-695-0531 U.S. JEWS IDENTIFY AS BOTH PRO-ISRAEL & CRITICAL OF ITS GOV’T Jewish Repub’s, Indi’s Support Pro-Israel Spending in Primaries; Dems Less So AIPAC popular among R’s, not as much among D’s; DMFI better liked by D’s WASHINGTON – As the Democratic National Committee sets to convene in New Orleans this week and consider resolutions on Israel and its AIPAC lobby, a new poll for the Jewish Electorate Institute (JEI) finds the majority of American Jews identifies as both pro-Israel and critical of the Israeli Government. There is limited awareness of the spending by pro-Israel groups in the 2026 primaries, with only one in ten saying they have heard a great deal about it. Attitudes split on partisan lines with majorities of independent and Republican Jews supporting this spending, while a plurality of Democrats is opposed. But still, the majority of Democrats are either not sure or supportive, the poll finds. These are among the top findings of a survey of registered Jews nationally for the JEI by The Mellman Group, several others of which were released last week before Passover. A fuller release of all its findings will come on Friday, after the holiday ends. Further, attitudes about AIPAC and DMFI, the pro-Israel groups spending the most in these primaries, are also split on partisan lines, with AIPAC slightly underwater among Democrats, and popular among Republicans. DMFI is less known but better liked among Democrats. J Street’s numbers are relatively even but measurably smaller. This analysis is based on the findings of a survey of 800 registered Jewish voters nationally. The survey was conducted for JEI by The Mellman Group using a high-quality online national panel from March 13-23, 2026. The margin of error for the sample as a whole is +/-3.5% at the 95% level of confidence (higher for subgroups). Majority of U.S. Jews Identifies as Both Pro-Israel and Critical of Israeli Policies An overwhelming 86% of American Jews describe themselves as generally pro-Israel. However, fewer than one-quarter (23%) say they are both pro-Israel and supportive of Israeli policies. A 63% majority identifies as pro-Israel and critical of the Israeli government policies – split roughly equally between those who are critical of some policies (32%) and those critical of many (31%). Just a combined 14% say they are not generally pro-Israel (9%) or do not hold a view (5%). This trend is not dissimilar to one in the JEI poll that shows Jews are also generally patriotic towards America but also critical of some government policies, numbers for which will be released Friday.  While pro-Israel sentiment extends across party (84% of Democrats, 90% of independents, 94% of Republicans), Democrats are considerably more likely to be critical of Israeli policies (73% critical) than independents (44%) and Republicans (39%).

EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE CONTACT: Monday, March 30, 2026, 07:00 am info@jewishelectorateinstitute.org 202-695-0531 AMERICAN JEWS EXPECT TO DISCUSS IRAN WAR, ANTISEMITISM AT PASSOVER SEDER TABLES, AMONG FOUR NEW QUESTIONS, POLL SAYS Majority Oppose the War, One-Third Support It, Some Feel Torn Nearly 3/4 Say Trump Needed Congress’ Approval Washington, DC – A new survey of American Jewish opinion, on the eve of the Passover holiday, shows the majority of American Jews expect the Iran war to be a topic at Seder this week. One-third of Jewish voters approve of the war, with a majority disapproving, and some feeling torn. Nearly three-quarters feel President Trump should have sought Congressional approval beforehand. There are also concerns about the long-term impact of the U.S. and Israel conducting this as a joint operation. The poll of 800 registered American Jewish voters nationally, 88% of whom say they will almost certainly or very likely vote in the November 2026 general election for Congress, were surveyed online by the Mellman Group from March 13th-23rd for the Jewish Electorate Institute (JEI), a nonprofit which enjoys an extensive record of survey research of the American Jewish community. Those polled indicated the war with Iran and antisemitism in America are the two topics most likely to come up at Seder or other Passover gatherings this week, with hate crimes in the U.S. and the topic of Gaza and the Palestinians trailing behind. Most Expect the War, Antisemitism to Be Topics at Seder Asked how likely these “four questions” were to come up at Seder this week, a 60% majority said the war was very likely to be discussed, including 31% saying it was almost certain to come up. This majority extended across party, age, Jewish denomination, and strength of Jewish identification. A slightly smaller 56% majority feels it is very likely that antisemitism in the U.S. will also be such a frequent topic of Passover discussion this year, while hate crimes in the U.S. (at 43%) and the issue of Gaza and the Palestinians (at 40%) lag among the four questions. The survey was conducted using a high-quality online national panel from March 13th-23rd, 2026. The margin of error for the sample as a whole is +/-3.5% at the 95% level of confidence (higher for subgroups). It was part of a larger poll, the results of which JEI will be releasing in the coming weeks.