Israel was one of the most heavily funded dividing lines in the 2026 Democratic primaries. On one side was United Democracy Project, the super PAC created by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). On the other was a newer, much smaller set of groups, led by a super PAC called American Priorities, formed to counter AIPAC and back Democrats critical of U.S. policy toward Israel. Here is who spent what, how their candidates fared, and why the two sides read the results so differently.
United Democracy Project
For most of its history, AIPAC lobbied but did not spend directly in elections. That changed in late 2021, when it created a traditional PAC and a super PAC, United Democracy Project (UDP). In 2022, UDP spent about $26 million in Democratic primaries where Israel was an issue and backed the winner in seven of nine, according to Politico. In 2024 it spent $37.9 million.
The 2026 cycle was its largest yet. UDP raised about $104 million by June 30, according to FEC records, and had spent $53.5 million on independent expenditures through Sept. 30, AIPAC told KPBS. Its biggest commitments:
| Race | UDP’s side | Approx. spending | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan Senate (Democratic primary and general) | For Haley Stevens in the primary; for Republican Mike Rogers in the general | About $31M in the primary, plus about $9M in the general | El-Sayed won both |
| Illinois, four Democratic House primaries | Largely through two other PACs, Elect Chicago Women and Affordable Chicago Now | $22M with allied groups | Two wins (IL-2, IL-8), two losses (IL-7, IL-9) |
| Maryland 5th (Democratic primary) | For Adrian Boafo | $5.7M | Won |
| California 14th (special election) | For Melissa Hernandez | $4.9M; more than $6M with other pro-Israel groups | Aisha Wahab won |
| Missouri 1st (Democratic primary) | For Rep. Wesley Bell, against Cori Bush | $3.1M with allies | Won |
| Kentucky 4th (Republican primary) | Against Rep. Thomas Massie, for Ed Gallrein | More than $3M against Massie, plus about $0.5M for Gallrein | Won (Massie lost) |
Michigan was the defining race. UDP and affiliated groups spent about $31 million backing Rep. Haley Stevens in the Democratic Senate primary, which she lost to Abdul El-Sayed. AIPAC-linked groups then spent about $9 million more backing Republican Mike Rogers in the general election, according to the New York Times as reported by Al Jazeera. El-Sayed won on Nov. 3. He has said AIPAC-aligned spending against him totaled $42 million across both elections.
Weeks before the election, on Oct. 21, AIPAC told its members it would stop endorsing candidates and stop making direct and earmarked contributions to them, citing growing resistance and challenges it expects to “continue to grow in the years ahead,” KPBS reported. The change does not apply to UDP, which can keep raising and spending unlimited sums.
American Priorities and the groups opposing AIPAC
American Priorities was formed in February 2026, after a group of donors, many from the tech industry, met following Zohran Mamdani’s election as New York City mayor, Politico reported. It set a goal of $10 million and spent about $8 million, a small fraction of UDP’s total. Like many super PACs, it also took some nonprofit money: a 501(c)(4) called Fig and Olive Action gave it $370,000, according to Inside Political Money.
Its main races, per Politico and Inside Political Money:
- New Jersey 12th: about $1.5 million for Adam Hamawy, its largest single investment. He won the primary.
- New York 13th: about $1.3 million for Darializa Avila Chevalier, who defeated Rep. Adriano Espaillat in the primary.
- North Carolina 4th: more than $1 million for Nida Allam, who lost to Rep. Valerie Foushee by about 1,200 votes. AIPAC says it did not spend in that race; Foushee had said she would not accept AIPAC money this cycle.
- Michigan Senate: about $678,000 supporting El-Sayed, who won.
- California 14th (special election): about $200,000 for Aisha Wahab, who beat UDP-backed Melissa Hernandez.
- Texas 30th: about $100,000 for Frederick Haynes III, who won.
Other groups were active on both sides of the issue, including Democratic Majority for Israel and J Street’s political arm, which backs Democrats who support Israel but criticize some of its government’s policies. J Street said on Nov. 4 that it had backed more than 200 candidates with more than $13 million this cycle.
Two ways to keep score
Depending on what is counted, 2026 looks like either a setback or a success for AIPAC.
Counting super PAC dollars: Responsible Statecraft, published by the Quincy Institute, which is critical of AIPAC, calculated that about $55.3 million of the $84.1 million spent by AIPAC’s political committees went to races where its preferred candidate lost, compared with 69% of UDP spending on winning outcomes in 2022 and 87% in 2024. Most of that loss figure comes from Michigan. Track AIPAC, a group that monitors and criticizes AIPAC-linked spending, found a different pattern in the Senate: of 26 Senate candidates who got more than $100,000 from AIPAC-linked groups, 21 won, Al Jazeera reported.
Counting candidates: AIPAC’s own count looks very different. On Nov. 4, it said 234 candidates it backed, from both parties, had won. In a later letter to members, it said it “helped 290 pro-Israel candidates win” and “helped defeat 29 detractors,” Politico reported. That count includes candidates supported through donations from AIPAC members, not only races where its super PAC spent.
Both numbers can be true at once. UDP’s big-money bets in a handful of contested Democratic primaries went poorly, while AIPAC’s broader donor network backed candidates who won hundreds of races, by its own count. Politico Magazine also argues that the shift in Democratic opinion on Israel since Oct. 7, 2023, did more to shape these races than either side’s money, and that candidates attacked AIPAC even in races where it did not spend.
What comes next
AIPAC says it will rely more on organized giving by individual members and back supporters of the U.S.-Israel relationship in both parties in 2028. American Priorities has already named nine House Democrats it plans to target in 2028 primaries, Axios reported. Final 2026 spending totals for both groups will appear in the post-general FEC reports due Dec. 3. For how the year’s biggest super PAC bets fared overall, see our 2026 scorecard.
Sources
- Politico Magazine: AIPAC built a super PAC to protect the Israel consensus. This election helped end it. (Nov. 8, 2026)
- Al Jazeera: How did AIPAC-backed candidates fare in the US midterm elections? (Nov. 7, 2026)
- American Priorities (Wikipedia)
- KPBS: AIPAC halts endorsements and direct contributions to candidates (Oct. 21, 2026)
- Responsible Statecraft: AIPAC dumped more than $55 million into losing midterm races (Nov. 4, 2026)
- Inside Political Money: AIPAC’s 2026 scorecard in Democratic primaries (updated Aug. 21, 2026)
- Inside Political Money: American Priorities scored big wins against AIPAC. Now what? (Aug. 20, 2026)
- Axios: Anti-AIPAC group targets 9 House Dems for 2028 (Sept. 23, 2026)
- United Democracy Project (Wikipedia, citing FEC records)
- FEC: United Democracy Project committee overview
Published by SuperPACs.com. Figures come from Federal Election Commission filings and the sources listed above. Read about how we work and our editorial standards.