But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. How we check
Randy Villegas
Democrat · U.S. House, California District 22
✓Opposes
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.
Two reviewers, reading the public record as a whole, agree: In his own words he calls the government of Israel a genocidal regime while objecting to the billions sent to it, and two independent outlets report his vow to vote against more weapons or military aid. Reviewed by hand on 2026-10-01. This candidate has no recorded tracked floor votes.
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On U.S. weapons and money to the government of Israel, Villegas vows to vote against sending additional weapons or military aid to Israel if elected, per CalMatters in May 2026. After his June 2026 primary win he said: "Folks on the ground are increasingly aware of the billions of dollars we're sending to this genocidal regime at the same time people are struggling to afford gas prices here in the Central Valley, to afford health care" (Barn Raising Media).
On the conflict, he answered yes in a February 2026 candidate forum when asked whether Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, and has called Israel a genocidal regime in interviews.
On campaign money and lobbying, he released May 2026 campaign media saying DC elites were trying to buy CA-22 for corporate and Israel-lobby-funded candidates, and criticized his primary opponent Jasmeet Bains for revising her Gaza statements after receiving pro-Israel group backing. On declaring primary victory he said the Valley is not for sale. Statements about who funds campaigns are recorded as rhetoric; his weapons position is the separate vow above.
The money
Targeted with $500K by PACs we track that support U.S. weapons funding for the government of Israel (2026); no direct 2026 support from them
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.
Money spent against them
Independent expenditures opposing this candidate: advertising and other spending made to defeat them, without the candidate's involvement or consent. DMFI reported 1 independent expenditure opposing this candidate on 2026-05-07, totalling $500K. This counts only the five lobbying groups we track, so it is a floor on what was spent against this candidate, not a total. Each expenditure is counted because the committee itself named this candidate as the target on its FEC filing. These lobbying groups often spend along party lines, or to protect an incumbent they back, so this is not by itself a reading of the candidate's position.
✓ Endorsed by Peace Action +2 more
Peace ActionA national peace and disarmament group. Its endorsements cover war, Pentagon spending and diplomacy broadly, not only U.S. weapons for the government of Israel.A New Policy PACA group backing congressional candidates who want a new U.S. policy toward Israel and Palestine grounded in U.S. and international law, including conditions on military aid.Track AIPACA watchdog on AIPAC-linked money. It backs candidates who reject AIPAC support and call for an arms embargo and conditions on aid to the government of Israel.These endorsements come from groups that push to restrict or end U.S. weapons transfers to the government of Israel. Endorsements from these groups are shown for information; they do not decide the mark.
In their words
“Folks on the ground are increasingly aware of the billions of dollars we're sending to this genocidal regime at the same time people are struggling to afford gas prices here in the Central Valley, to afford health care”
Peace Action (2026 endorsement) · A New Policy PAC (2026 endorsement) · Track AIPAC (2026 endorsement)
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
January 2024 [The date is given only as January 2024, taken from the text itself, so it is listed here but not used for the card; undated advocacy source]: Signed an open letter to the Biden White House calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and an end to unconditional U.S. military aid to Israel. A New Policy PAC profile; also referenced by a hostile source, DMFI (2026-03-11).
2026-05-21 [Current position; verified]: CalMatters: "Villegas vows to vote against sending additional weapons or military aid to Israel should he be elected." CalMatters.
2026-05-21 and 2026-06-09 [Position]: Two independent outlets report the same vow, CalMatters on May 21 and Jewish Insider on June 9, which wrote that he "vowed to vote against additional military funding to the Jewish state if elected"; neither quotes his own words on the vote.
2026-05-29 [Position]: Told Mother Jones: "Increasingly, people are aware that we are sending billions and billions of dollars to this genocidal regime that has universal healthcare…while we do not". Mother Jones (Noah Lanard, May 29, 2026); the ellipsis is the magazine's.
2026-06-12 [Current position; verified]: "Folks on the ground are increasingly aware of the billions of dollars we're sending to this genocidal regime at the same time people are struggling to afford gas prices here in the Central Valley, to afford health care." Barn Raising Media.
Characterization of the conflict
January 2024 [The date is given only as January 2024, so it is listed here but not used for the card]: The same open letter expressed solidarity with Palestinians. A New Policy PAC.
February 2026 [Current position; month-only date anchored to the Mother Jones piece's May 2026 publication]: Answered "Yes" at a Fresno County Young Democrats Zoom forum when asked whether Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Mother Jones.
2026-04-14 [Current position; source did not open, Facebook]: Reaffirmed immediate-ceasefire support as a campaign platform plank; the only source is a campaign Facebook post returning 400. Not linked; not used on the card.
2026-05-12 [Current position]: Campaign media arguing "DC elites try to buy CA-22 for corporate and Israel lobby funded" candidates. Indivisible Facebook video (opened; a third-party account, so attribution runs through the video content).
2026-05-31 [Current position]: On Bains revising her Gaza statements after pro-Israel group backing: "She's willing to change her answers depending who's in the room... I think the Central Valley deserves better than that." Guardian.
2026-06-09 [Current position]: Primary victory statement: "Voters in the Central Valley have spoken and they have declared that the Valley is not for sale... Despite the onslaught of outside corporate money spent against us, we have shown that working people are ready for change." Jewish Insider.
Safety and antisemitism (context, not a weapons or funding position)
January 2024 [The date is given only as January 2024, so it is listed here but not used for the card]: The open letter he signed included a call "to end the weaponization of antisemitism claims against Israel's critics." A New Policy PAC. No direct personal statements on Jewish safety or antisemitism found beyond that letter.
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.
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