But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. How we check
Judy Chu
Chu voted against the April 2024 Israel aid package, saying it directed billions toward Israel's offensive use of weapons, and says she has voted for Iron Dome and other defensive systems. She signed letters asking Israel to promise to follow international law when using U.S. weapons.
The email has replies@butwhatcanyoudo.org in cc, so we can post their answer on their page in their own words; remove it if you prefer. Keep the subject line as it is, add your name, and send.
You asked Judy Chu where they stand.
Deep Dive
On April 20, 2024 Chu explained her vote against H.R. 8034, the Israel Security Supplemental, saying the bill "directs many billions of dollars towards the offensive use of weapons by Israel" and that "I've consistently voted to support funding for the Iron Dome and other defensive military systems for Israel." She said she would have supported a package restricted to defensive assistance. In the same statement she said, "I have signed on to letters that ask that in the dissemination of U.S. weapons, the Israeli government promises to adhere to the international law," and that "the right-wing Netanyahu government has ignored these calls, failed to uphold U.S. and international law, and proven to be an untrustworthy, unreliable partner."
On March 12, 2024 she co-led a House resolution reaffirming support for a negotiated two-state solution, which she described as the only path forward for an enduring peace with sovereignty and security for both Israelis and Palestinians. Her foreign policy issues page criticizes West Bank settlement expansion and the destruction of Palestinian villages as obstacles to peace.
On April 20, 2024 she signed a 19-member joint statement that said "Benjamin Netanyahu appears willing to sacrifice the hostages while inflicting extraordinary suffering on the people of Gaza." On July 24, 2024 she declined to attend Netanyahu's address to Congress, saying he "has purposefully undermined prospects for peace and taken a battering ram to Israel's democracy."
In the weeks after October 7, 2023 she condemned Hamas's attack and called for humanitarian pauses in Gaza, then on November 19, 2023 called for a negotiated ceasefire. As safety context, she spoke against antisemitism at a November 2023 hearing and in June 2026 reintroduced a Congressional Gold Medal bill honoring Americans who rescued Jewish refugees in World War II.
The record
Supported sending weapons or funding in 1 of 6 tracked votes · Cosponsors the Block the Bombs Act
• Vote record imported from official House Clerk roll calls for H.R. 6126, H.R. 8034, and H.R. 8369. Other position fields remain under investigation.
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.
See a dash? Ask the candidate where they stand, then send us their answer and we'll review it and update the mark. Or volunteer to help review candidates.
Voted to send weapons or funding in some, but no more than half, of their recorded tracked votes. (Supported sending weapons or funding in 1 of 6 tracked votes.)
The money
Checked the five lobbying groups we track; no direct 2026 support found
In their words
Research log
The notes behind this card: what we looked at, what we found, and where each item came from.
Searched 2026-08-10 for Chu and antisemitism, Netanyahu/AIPAC, conflict statements, military aid/ceasefire). Recorded key votes (H.R. 6126, H.R. 8034, H.R. 8369, H.R. 7217, NDAA FY26 missile-defense amendment, H.R. 8595) are badges and are not restated.
U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel
- 2024-04-20 [Current position; verified]: Explained her No vote on H.R. 8034: "H.R. 8034, directs many billions of dollars towards the offensive use of weapons by Israel"; "I've consistently voted to support funding for the Iron Dome and other defensive military systems for Israel"; said she would have supported a defensive-only package (attributive, not returned word for word when the page was read). Release.
- 2024-04-20 [Current position; verified]: "I have signed on to letters that ask that in the dissemination of U.S. weapons, the Israeli government promises to adhere to the international law," and the Netanyahu government "failed to uphold U.S. and international law, and proven to be an untrustworthy, unreliable partner." Same release.
- Undated [advocacy tracker; corroboration only]: reversecanarymission.org page on Chu supports the defensive-systems claim; advocacy source, not used on the card. Tracker.
Characterization of the conflict
- 2023-11-02 [Months after October 7, 2023]: Condemned Hamas's "unconscionable, barbaric attack," acknowledged Israel's right to defend itself and secure the hostages' release; called for immediate humanitarian pauses in Gaza to protect civilians, deliver medical supplies, and allow safe passage for refugees; said Israeli strikes on refugee camps with mass civilian deaths could not "simply be accepted as the cost of war" (quote fragments per the search notes, not independently verified). Release.
- 2023-11-19 [Months after October 7, 2023]: Called for a negotiated ceasefire and cessation of hostilities to end the loss of innocent lives. Release.
- 2024-03-12 [Current position]: Co-led a House resolution reaffirming support for a negotiated two-state solution, described as the "only path forward for an enduring peace" (quote per the search notes, not independently verified). Release.
- Undated [issues page; source metadata shows 2022-07-22; the claim in the search notes of 2024-2026 updates comes from the text itself and is treated as a claim]: Criticizes West Bank settlement expansion and destruction of Palestinian villages as obstacles to peace. Issues page.
Rhetoric and lobbying
- 2024-04-20 [Current position; multi-signer document; verified that Chu is among the 19 signatories]: Joint statement: "Benjamin Netanyahu appears willing to sacrifice the hostages while inflicting extraordinary suffering on the people of Gaza." Joint text, not her individual words. AOC release.
- 2024-07-24 [Current position; verified]: Declined to attend Netanyahu's joint address: "Prime Minister Netanyahu has purposefully undermined prospects for peace and taken a battering ram to Israel's democracy"; "I will not attend today's joint address by Prime Minister Netanyahu, but I will always stand up for peace and security for both Israelis and Palestinians." Release.
- No recorded statements from Chu criticizing or targeting domestic Israel lobbying organizations such as AIPAC. [Nothing found]
Safety and antisemitism (context, not a weapons or funding position)
- 2023-11-15 [Months after October 7, 2023]: At a House Ways and Means hearing, said "there's no room for hate or anti-Semitism in this country"; cited Hillel at the Claremont Colleges advising students to stay indoors; advocated stricter hate-crime reporting by federal and local law enforcement. Hearing video (undated video metadata; date per the search notes).
- 2026-06-23 [Current position]: Reintroduced the American Rescuers of the Holocaust Congressional Gold Medal Act with Sen. Schiff; statement cited "rising antisemitism, bigotry, and authoritarianism in our country and worldwide" (quote per the search notes, not independently verified). Release.
Also in this race
- –No Position Found April Verlato (Republican)
All California candidates.
See everyone on the California ballot →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.