You’d think that with 8 million Jews under fire in Israel from a country that screams “Death to Israel!” that Jews around the world would unite to support the U.S.-Israel war to defeat the Islamic Republic. It comes as no surprise that Jews in Israel overwhelmingly support this war of self-defense. But for American Jews, this solidarity drops precipitously, to only about half the tiny U.S. Jewish population.
Whether you’re an American Jew who supports the war or one who does not, you have to ask, “Why this disparity?” Why would American Jews not unanimously support a war meant to protect our Israeli brothers and sisters, whose very existence is threatened by Iran?
Statistics provide strong clues about the beliefs of American Jews who support their brethren in Israel and those who don’t. While some 93% of Jews in Israel support the war, according to a March survey by the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI), only 47% of American Jews who voted for 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris support it.
Support for Israel by Democrats continues to fall
Why would Harris voters be disinclined to support fellow Jews in the State of Israel? The Democratic Party has been shedding support for Israel steadily over recent years. Democrats have swung from a majority in 2023 supporting Israel in the Palestinian conflict to today, when, for the first time, some 65% of Democrats sympathize more with the Palestinians, and only 17% of Democrats sympathize with Israel (Gallup poll, February 2026).
Since some 70% of American Jews identify as Democrats, this may explain their failure to support Israel’s war. Yet think of it: A substantial majority of Democrats support a Muslim group whose avowed purpose is to destroy the State of Israel.
What’s more, lies that Israel has committed genocide, while manifestly false, have been increasing steadily over recent years. They reached a crescendo among Democratic politicians this past year. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has leveled the charge, as have Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Ilhan Omer (D-Minn.) and others. Recently, presidential hopeful California Gov. Gavin Newsom joined them, adding “apartheid” to his anti-Israel libels, though he later walked back that comment.
Jewish liberals less supportive than Jewish conservatives
In addition to the dramatic erosion of support for Israel among Democrats, we also see a correlation of American Jewish support for the war between self-described “liberals” and “conservatives.” Support for the U.S. decision to go to war against Iran is only 28% among “strong liberal” U.S. Jews, whereas the war enjoys 100% support among “strong conservatives” (JPPI).
One possible reason liberal American Jews withhold support for the Iran war is their fear that the Iran war will “harm Israel’s image in the U.S.,” a belief held by 72% of “strong liberals” but only 9% of “strong conservatives.” Clearly, liberal Jews are more concerned with Israel’s image in the United States (and possibly its reflection on them personally?) than they are with the physical safety of Israeli Jews and the survival of the Jewish state.
In addition to the erosion of support for Israel among Democrats is a correlation of American Jewish support for the war between self-described “liberals” and “conservatives.”
Two reasons why American Jews fail to support Israel
The JPPI polling allows us to associate two main characteristics with American Jews who do not whole-heartedly support fellow Jews and the State of Israel in the midst of daily, deadly Iranian missile fire on their heads.
First, American Jews are more likely to withhold support for the U.S.-Israel war against Iran if they are Democrats. Ask yourself: If you are a Jewish Democrat who does not support the U.S.-Israel war, is it because you are first a Democrat and second a Jew? Also ask: Do you withhold support because Israel is a partisan issue (“I hate Trump” or “I hate Netanyahu”) or because you are more loyal to your political party than to the Jewish people—your people?
Second, polling shows that the more “liberal” American Jews consider themselves, the more likely they are to disapprove of the war, despite it being fought in defense of Israel and fellow Jews. If you are a liberal Jew who does not support the U.S.-Israel war, ask yourself: Is it because you are first a liberal … and second a Jew? Are your liberal values so strong that they prevent you from supporting fellow Jews and the Jewish state in a fight for their existence?
While the war isn’t ‘popular’ in U.S., it should be among American Jews
Finally, let us add two important statistics that create context regarding Jewish support for the U.S.-Israel war against Iran.
First, let’s admit: Overall support for the Iran war among Americans generally stands at only about 40%, with a majority of Americans (Jewish or not) opposing it. Remember, too, that even liberal, Harris-supporting Jews exceed this number, supporting the Iran war to the tune of 47%—so bravo to them.
Second, overall support for the Iran war by “communally engaged” (active) American Jews is 68%—much higher than the American average, but still leaving one-third of all “engaged” American Jews unsupportive of a war to protect the Jewish state and Jewish lives. Let’s get this straight: You’re a committed, “involved” Jewish American, but you oppose the U.S.-Israel war to defend the Jewish people?
U.S. is not fighting Iran because of Jews and Israel
In closing, let’s acknowledge a fact: The primary reason that the United States launched this war has nothing to do with Jews or Israel; neither is even among the top three reasons.
Iran has been America’s public enemy No. 1 and the object of Iranian cries for its death for some 47 years. Iran obsessively seeks to a) develop nuclear weapons; b) build ballistic missiles that can target much of Europe and the Middle East, including Israel; and c) it seeks regional hegemony by use of terrorist jihadi militias.
Clearly, Iran’s status as the greatest sponsor of global terrorism provides ample reasons for every American to support this current war. As New York Times columnist Bret Stephens notes, if you have Stage II cancer, you don’t wait to treat it until it becomes Stage IV.
But for American Jews, the stakes are higher. Reasons for American Jews to support the war against Iran are even greater and more immediately life-threatening than they are for generic Democrats and liberals.
You can be an American first and a Jew second. Certainly, being a Jew—no matter any other objections to this war—should tip the balance toward support for defeating a Jew-hating Iranian regime that swears “Death to Israel.”
Originally published by Facts and Logic About the Middle East (FLAME).
