JTA — Who is the pro-Israel lobby AIPAC supporting in Tuesday’s Illinois congressional primaries? Not the Jewish candidates, or the most traditionally pro-Israel one; rather, the organization made a last-minute spend on a candidate who says Israel is guilty of genocide.

The topsy-turvy spending — totaling more than $20 million in disclosed ad buys — comes amid an election cycle in which AIPAC has become a dirty word on both the left and the right. At the same time, the group’s affiliated PACs are spending more than ever on electoral politics. Private donors tied to AIPAC are spending even more.

The Illinois primaries follow two other elections where AIPAC was heavily involved: a New Jersey special election where it bet against a self-proclaimed Zionist who offered mild criticism of Israel, and who lost to a harsh critic of Israel, and a primary in North Carolina in which the specter of the group loomed large even as it did not put any money on the line. There, the candidate who previously took AIPAC donations only barely eked out a win.

But the Illinois spending — all in reliably safe Democratic districts — far outpaces the outlay in New Jersey. AIPAC’s intense interest in Illinois may be deliberate tone-setting: According to an Agudath Israel of Illinois newsletter obtained by the Washington Post, an AIPAC director gave a presentation warning that the success of progressive candidates in the state’s early primary could embolden progressive candidates in other states.

Many candidates in the races have negatively invoked AIPAC during their campaigns, and a longtime Jewish representative rescinded one endorsement because her candidate was benefiting from AIPAC support. Two Jewish potential 2028 presidential contenders from Illinois — Gov. JB Pritzker and former Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel — also recently spoke out against AIPAC.

As the transformative power of pro-Israel spending runs up against a left that treats pro-Israel views as toxic, here’s what Jewish voters should be watching for on Tuesday in Illinois:

District 9, where it is Jew vs. Jew vs. a Palestinian-American

One of the most dramatic and jam-packed Democratic primaries in the country, and one of the most closely watched for Jews, is unfolding in Chicago’s northern suburbs.

A whopping 15 Democratic candidates are vying for the chance to replace retiring Jewish Rep. Jan Schakowsky, who has held the seat since 1999 — and whose predecessor for decades was also Jewish. The race includes four Jews and two pro-Palestinian activists.

Of that field, Evanston mayor Daniel Biss, a Jewish progressive, has a marginal lead in polling, along with Schakowsky’s endorsement and the backing of liberal pro-Israel group J Street.

Biss is a self-proclaimed Zionist and critic of the Israeli government. He has visited the country many times, his mother was born there and his maternal grandparents were Holocaust survivors.

But Kat Abughazaleh, a Palestinian-American and former journalist who has the backing of the pro-Palestinian PAL PAC, has strong fundraising and has narrowed the polling gap.

Abughazaleh accuses Israel of genocide and has made YouTube videos decrying Illinois laws that target the boycott Israel movement.

She also spoke out against some forms of antisemitism. “Pretty much every major conspiracy theory is rooted in antisemitism,” the candidate told the JAAM podcast in January. “It drives me crazy when people who had no idea where Gaza was before October 7 have a lot of thoughts about how antisemitism isn’t a real problem.”

A different Jewish politician, state Sen. Laura Fine, is AIPAC’s preferred candidate: A PAC with ties to AIPAC, Elect Chicago Women, has reported spending $2.7 million on pro-Fine and anti-Biss ads. Biss’s campaign has accused Fine’s campaign of illegally coordinating with Elect Chicago Women.........

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