But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. How we check

Kyle Kirkland

Republican · U.S. House, California District 21
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How this mark works

We track key votes on sending U.S. weapons and money to the government of Israel. A check means every tracked vote they cast came down against sending more, on the side of peace and de-escalation. A question mark means a mixed record: they sided with sending up to half of the time. An X means they voted to send more weapons and money in over half of their tracked votes, even as the way those weapons and dollars were being used became more and more obvious. At exactly half, money this election cycle from a lobbying group we track, or an endorsement from a group that backs sending weapons, makes it an X. Only votes actually cast are counted. Where a candidate has no recorded votes on these bills, the mark comes instead from a reviewed reading of their public record (money from the lobbying groups we track, endorsements, and their own words since January 26, 2024). There an X also covers fully backing the conduct of the war by the government of Israel without significant reservations, and a question mark also covers speaking about Israel without saying clearly where they stand on U.S. weapons and funding. A dash means No Position Found: we found nothing in their own words about Israel, Gaza or the war.

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Two reviewers, reading the public record as a whole, agree: Answering a March 2024 voter-guide question, he calls Israel "our strongest ally in the Middle East" and says we must stand in solidarity with the Jewish people "as they fight to defend their sovereignty from terrorist states", with nothing pointing the other way. Reviewed by hand on 2026-10-09. This candidate has no recorded tracked floor votes.

Has not stated a position on U.S. military aid to Israel or aid to Palestinians. In a questionnaire for the March 2024 CA-20 special primary he called Israel our strongest ally and said an attack on Israel is an attack on the United States.

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Deep Dive

Kirkland, a Fresno businessman running in CA-21, has no recorded statements on U.S. military aid appropriations or weapons transfers to the government of Israel, and none on U.S. aid to Palestinians. An initial search checked his campaign site and his candidate profiles.

His one substantive statement comes from an iVoterGuide questionnaire for the March 19, 2024 CA-20 special primary, where he wrote: "Israel is our strongest ally in the Middle East. We must stand in solidarity with the Jewish people as they fight to defend their sovereignty from terrorist states. An attack on Israel is an attack on the United States, and we must stand firm in our commitment to protect and defend our allies."

A December 2025 interview is reported in which he was asked about pro-Israel political action committees and said his commitment is to the Central Valley and to listening to all sides rather than relying on national lobbying interests. An initial search’s only source for that item is a YouTube short that does not name him in its metadata, so it is held on the research page pending a better source. A statement about where campaign money comes from is not a weapons or funding position and is not treated as one.

The money

Checked the five lobbying groups we track; no direct 2026 support found

2026 support from the five lobbying groups we track
Nothing recorded (as of 2026-07-23) from the five lobbying groups we track; earlier cycles and earmarked donations not yet tracked.
Support-only OpenFEC data. Opposition independent expenditures are excluded.

In their words

“Israel is our strongest ally in the Middle East. We must stand in solidarity with the Jewish people as they fight to defend their sovereignty from terrorist states. An attack on Israel is an attack on the United States, and we must stand firm in our commitment to protect and defend our allies.”
Source ↗, 2024-03-19

Research log

The notes behind this card: what we looked at, what we found, and where each item came from.

U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel

Characterization of the conflict

  • 2024-03-19 [Current position; questionnaire for the March 19, 2024 CA-20 special primary; the source page itself is undated; verified]: Called Israel "our strongest ally in the Middle East," said the Jewish people are fighting to "defend their sovereignty from terrorist states," and wrote "An attack on Israel is an attack on the United States." iVoterGuide.

Rhetoric and lobbying

  • 2025-12-12 [Current position; date taken from the text itself; source suspect]: Reported GV Wire interview in which, asked about pro-Israel political action committees, he said his primary commitment is to the Central Valley and CA-21 and that representation requires listening to all sides rather than relying on national lobbying interests. The only cited source is a YouTube short whose metadata does not name him; no GV Wire page was found. Held pending a better source; not used on the card.

Safety and antisemitism (context, not a weapons or funding position)

  • 2024-03-19 [Current position; same questionnaire as above]: "We must stand in solidarity with the Jewish people as they fight to defend their sovereignty." No other statements or actions on domestic antisemitism found. iVoterGuide.

Background

  • Fresno-based businessman (Club One Casino owner, California Gaming Association president); ran in the 2024 CA-20 primary before the 2026 CA-21 run. Campaign site, Ballotpedia via Wikipedia.

Also in this race

  1. ✗ Jim Costa (Democrat)

All California candidates.

But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. Every claim on this page goes through at least two verification steps. Open Find Your Candidates for votes, funding and contact details.