AIPAC Spent $84 Million in US Midterms, Yet Most of Its Backed Candidates Lost

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) spent more than $84 million in the United States midterm elections, according to a new report by Responsible Statecraft.

According to the report, nearly two-thirds of that spending, about $55 million, went behind candidates who lost.

The largest share, about $32 million, was spent trying to defeat Abdul El-Sayed, the newly elected Democratic senator in Michigan. He won by a large margin.

In his victory speech, Sayed targeted AIPAC, thanking it for spending $42 million against them and expressing gratitude for being given the chance to defeat it twice, according to the material.

AIPAC also spent about $6 million against Daniel Biss, the winner in Illinois's 9th congressional district. The material describes Biss as a critic of Israel's policies who won the seat easily.

Compared with previous years, the result was one of AIPAC's weakest performances in the report. In the 2022 midterms, 69 percent of its spending was behind winning candidates, and in 2024 the figure was 87 percent.

According to the material, the Iran war and the rising cost of living are thought to have influenced voters and produced this outcome.

The material also notes that Vice President JD Vance blamed the relationship with Israel and the AIPAC-backed Iran war for the Republicans' defeat.

On Wednesday, AIPAC claimed on the social platform X that more than 234 candidates supported by its members had won their elections.

In a statement congratulating winning Democratic leaders, the group congratulated Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries on their caucus's victory.

The anti-AIPAC tracking group AIPAC Tracker said 30 members of Congress won this time without the organisation's help.