AIPAC announced it will no longer officially endorse or contribute directly to candidates, but the pro-Israel lobby group is not retreating from elections spending, according to reporting by The Intercept.
AIPAC and its super PAC, United Democracy Project, spent on 333 of the 473 seats up for election in the 2026 midterms cycle. Direct spending totaled $53.3 million from AIPAC and $66.7 million from UDP, compared to $53.7 million and $41.4 million the previous cycle.
The groups are now using less transparent methods to influence races. UDP gave another $13.1 million to other committees in Democratic primaries, more than triple the $3.5 million it gave through other groups last cycle. Several pop-up PACs formed this year, registered just before primaries, allowing them to delay disclosing their donors until after the election passed. These groups took money from UDP, spent on ads against candidates critical of Israel, and then dissolved.
Lara Friedman, president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace, said AIPAC's shift to obscurity shows that "its brand has become politically radioactive."
AIPAC's biggest investment was in the Michigan Senate Democratic primary, where UDP spent more than $30 million attacking candidate Abdul El-Sayed and backing Rep. Haley Stevens. El-Sayed, who has criticized the pro-Israel lobby, won the primary and is now the Democratic nominee.
UDP is continuing to spend in the general election, spending just over $500,000 so far against El-Sayed in his contest with Republican Mike Rogers.
Among Democrats, Rep. Wesley Bell of Missouri received the most AIPAC funding when UDP spending is excluded. On the Republican side, Ed Gallrein, a Trump-backed challenger who unseated libertarian critic Rep. Thomas Massie in Kentucky, was the top beneficiary. Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine received the greatest amount of AIPAC largesse among Republicans when UDP spending is excluded, as she faces a tight general election against Democrat Troy Jackson.