Recent polls of US voters demonstrate a steep decline in overall support for Israel. For example, in February, when Gallup asked with whom they most sympathised, 41% of respondents said Palestinians, while only 36% named Israel. This markedly contrasts with the results of Gallup’s same question in 2023, when 54% of respondents sympathised more with Israel and 36% more with Palestinians. Then, a few weeks ago, Pew Research Center released a poll in which 60% of respondents had an unfavourable view of Israel.

To better understand these changes in voters’ opinions, the roles played by Israel’s wars with Lebanon and the Palestinians in shaping their views, and how voters want the US government and members of Congress to respond, the Arab American Institute and Voters for Justice in Palestine, a North Carolina advocacy group, commissioned John Zogby Strategies to conduct a nationwide poll about these matters. In all, 1,001 likely US voters were surveyed (yielding results with a margin of error of /-3.2).

What’s clear is that Israeli behaviours have fallen into disfavour with a plurality of American voters. Overall, 41% of voters agree that Israeli actions........

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