Support for Israel is rising among US Democrats amid war with Hamas

The war between Israel and Hamas has ruled headlines in media around the world since Oct. 7, when Hamas invaded Israel and launched a surprise terror attack, resulting in thousands of deaths.

Israel’s most important ally has been especially supportive during this time, culminating in U.S. President Joe Biden’s historic visit to the nation on Wednesday.

In recent days, several polls have illustrated the high level of public support for Israel in the U.S. and even showed a surprisingly unusual rise in sympathy among Democratic voters, who for years have been trending toward the Palestinian side.

About 76% of Americans, including 76% of Democrats, responded that supporting Israel is in the national interest of the United States, according to a national poll conducted by Quinnipiac University of registered voters.

More than half of Democrats, around 59%, even said they approved sending weapons and ammunition to Israel to help its war effort. Just under 80% of Republicans approved sending aid to Israel.

The new poll also saw an all-time high for the number of respondents in a Quinnipiac polls, saying their sympathies are 61% in support of Israelis than with Palestinians.

Recent n and CNN found similar results.

Fox found a huge increase in respondents favoring Israel over Palestinians, with the margin moving from 35% (59% vs. 24%) to 50% (65%-18%).

“The main reason for the overall increase in support for Israel is Democrats have dramatically changed their position,” according to Republican Daron Shaw, who led the survey.

“They've moved from +7 Israel to +34, which undoubtedly reflects revulsion over the nature of the attacks,” Shaw said.

The latest CNN poll found that a solid majority of 71% of the American public felt a high level of sympathy toward the Jewish state following the Hamas massacre.

Taken together, over two-thirds of respondents believe the Israeli military response in Gaza was either “fully justified” (50%) or “partially justified” (20%).

Among Democrats, the number saying Israeli military countermeasures were “fully justified” was lower, at 38%, but an additional 30% thought the Israeli reaction was “partially justified.”

The high level of public support for Israel has also led to a tempering of statements among vocally anti-Israel Democratic lawmakers.

One example can be seen in a recent letter addressed to Biden that was written by 55 progressive House Democrats, Jewish Insider wrote.

Unlike what was common during previous rounds of fighting in Gaza, the letter doesn’t explicitly call for an immediate ceasefire or de-escalation.

It remains to be seen if this trend that favors Israel will continue after the much-anticipated Israeli ground invasion of the Gaza Strip.