AIPAC showed up in New Jersey’s 11th House district to take out former Rep. Tom Malinowski in the Democratic primary.
Malinowski is a former ally of the lobbying group, as he’s been a consistent supporter of Israel. However, amid the genocide, he suggested that U.S. military aid to the country be conditioned.
AIPAC sought to send a message to candidates ahead of the upcoming midterms: stay 100% committed to Israel or face the organization’s wrath.
“If these assholes get away with doing this to me, they will do it to every Democrat they want to target in the country in the midterms,” Malinowski warned a crowd of supporters last month.
AIPAC spent $2.3 million on ads attacking Malinowski, but Israel is deeply unpopular among Democratic voters, so they had to keep their motivation secret.
Instead, AIPAC’s Super PAC, the United Democracy Project (UDP), bankrolled a series of ads attacking Malinowski from the left. The spots pointed out that he had voted for a DHS funding bill back in 2019 that included ICE funding.
AIPAC’s preferred candidate was New Jersey Lieutenant Governor Tahesha Way, who has raked in nearly $100,000 from pro-Israel lobbying groups.
AIPAC’s strategy certainly didn’t help Way, who finished in third place with just 17% of the vote.
However, Malinowski wasn’t victorious either. The winner appears to be progressive organizer Analilia Mejia, who helped run Bernie Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign. She was the only candidate in the race who referred to Israel’s actions in Gaza as a genocide.
Although the results aren’t official at the time I’m typing this, Malinowski has conceded the defeat. Mejia is expected to prevail against the Republican nominee, Joe Hathaway, in the April special election.
It’s impossible to know the exact impact of the attack ads, but Mejia is expected to win by just a couple of points, which sure makes it seem like AIPAC’s plan backfired and helped secure the election for someone who is to the left of Malinowski on Palestine.
This entire saga highlights some of the major challenges facing AIPAC this election season. The group can’t be honest with voters about why it’s running ads, but it also can’t attack Democratic candidates from the right because the base has moved to the left. Going after centrists who have expressed mild criticisms of Israel is already risky, as a number of progressives will be running.
AIPAC has brushed off criticisms of its New Jersey strategy and insists it will continue to spend heavily against candidates who question U.S. support for Israel.
“We are going to have a focus on stopping candidates who are detractors of Israel or who want to put conditions on aid,” said UDP spokesperson Patrick Dorton. “We had very serious concerns about Tom Malinowski, who clearly was open to conditioning aid to Israel. He knew that he had moved to what is not a pro-Israel position.”
An Axios report declares that the left “smells blood” after the “shocking” primary. A senior House Democrat confirmed to the website that centrist members were concerned about the outcome. However, another said the blame rested squarely with pro-Israel groups
“AIPAC-affiliated groups spent millions,” they said. “Wouldn’t have even happened without that.”
Introducing The Shift video series
Check out the new Mondoweiss video series based on my work here in The Shift. In each episode, Mondoweiss Managing Editor Adam Horowitz and I will break down the latest in Palestine politics in the U.S.
Here is the most recent episode where we discuss AIPAC’s massive miscalculation in the NJ-11 special election, and Team Israel’s controversial roster in the upcoming World Baseball Classic:
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Religious Liberty Commission
On Monday, the Trump administration’s White House Religious Liberty Commission held a public hearing on antisemitism.
This was expected to be a straightforward affair, where the conservative members would inevitably focus on the alleged dangers of Palestine activism. However, the meeting was driven off the rails by conservative activist and former Miss California Carrie Prejean Boller, who openly began to question what antisemitism has to do with Israel.
“I am a Catholic, and Catholics don’t embrace Zionism,” Boller told the panel.
“Catholics do not embrace Zionism, just so you know,” she continued. “I want to be clear on what the definition of antisemitism is. If I don’t support the political state of Israel, am I an antisemite, yes or no?”
Boller went on to inquire about the carnage in Gaza.
“Since we’ve mentioned Israel a total of 17 times, are you willing to condemn what Israel has done in Gaza?” she asked the other members. “You won’t condemn that? Just on the record.”
Boller, who was a member of Trump’s 2020 Campaign Advisory Board, also defended far-right pundit Candace Owens from antisemitism allegations.
Just two days after the meeting, Boller was kicked off the panel by its chair, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.
“Carrie Prejean Boller has been removed from President Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission,” he tweeted. “No member of the Commission has the right to hijack a hearing for their own personal and political agenda on any issue. This is clearly, without question, what happened Monday in our hearing on antisemitism in America. This was my decision.”
The saga is yet another indication that Israel has become a contentious issue within the MAGA base that propelled Trump to a presidential victory.
Odds & Ends
🇺🇸 The government-sanctioned persecution of Leqaa Kordia
🏛️ Palestine Action activists acquitted over Elbit action
🗣️ Liberal institutions are designed to acknowledge Palestinian oppression but not end it
🐘 Israel’s Support Is Collapsing (Even Among Republicans)
💬 Responsible Statecraft: Mysterious ‘peace’ groups are sending Americans pro-Israel texts
🇵🇸 Haaretz: Netanyahu Gives the IDF More Leeway to Attack as He Hopes Trump Fumbles on Peace in Gaza
✷ Common Dreams: ‘Where Is the Ceasefire?’: Israel’s Bombing of Gaza Kills 23, Mostly Women and Children
🇮🇱 Counterpunch: Made-for-Israel Wars: America’s Dangerous Habit of Forgetting
💰 Drop Site: AIPAC Coordinates Donors in Illinois House Primaries
🤔 Al Jazeera: Trump opposes Israel’s West Bank annexation, official says, as outcry grows
💻 Electronic Intifada: Why I quit Dell over Gaza
皿 Zeteo: Why Has This Columbia University Protester Been in ICE Detention for Nearly a Year?
🗳️ PAL (Peace, Accountability and Leadership) PAC, a new political action committee “exclusively committed to supporting champions for Palestinian rights” has announced its first set of midterm endorsements: Rep. Summer Lee (PA-12), Rep. Ilhan Omar (MN-5), Rep. Delia Ramirez (IL-3), and Rep. Rashida Tlaib (MI-13).
“We are living in a new political moment. The sheer number of viable candidates committed to Palestinian freedom and human rights running in the 2026 cycle represents an unprecedented opportunity, one we cannot afford to miss. For too long, the political calculus on Palestine has been defined by silence, complicity, and a refusal to acknowledge the grave injustices faced by the Palestinian people. Today, we stand at the threshold of change,” said Margaret DeReus, Executive Director of PAL PAC, in a statement. “PAL PAC was founded with a defining priority: to end Israel’s ongoing human rights abuses against Palestinians and stop U.S. complicity in and backing of Israel’s apartheid system, illegal theft of Palestinian land, and genocide against Palestinians. The 2026 election cycle is our chance to shift the political calculus on Palestine and set a new foundation.”
