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

Angélica María Dueñas

Democrat · U.S. House, California District 29
✓From their own words
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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No recorded votes on the bills we track. In their own words on August 10, 2026.

Duenas' platform pledges: "I will never vote to send U.S. weapons or military aid to Israel" and says U.S. tax dollars must not fund Israel's genocide in Gaza. She calls for the U.S. to decouple from the government of Israel.

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Deep Dive

Duenas' campaign website, read August 10, 2026, states: "I will never vote to send U.S. weapons or military aid to Israel." The site's "End the Genocide" section says, "U.S. tax dollars must not fund Israel's genocide in Gaza, forced displacement, collective punishment, apartheid, or illegal occupation." Both sentences were verified verbatim against the live site.

On a campaign page titled "AIPAC Explained" she writes that "The U.S. must decouple from the government of Israel, this relationship has drawn us into repeated conflict" and that "voting out politicians tied to AIPAC is the first step to restoring independent policy." Her site also states, "I have never taken money from AIPAC, and I never will." That is a pledge about campaign donations; it is not itself a position on U.S. weapons or money to the government of Israel, which her separate weapons pledge covers.

Several items found rest on sources that would not open, or are unconfirmed and are held to the research page: August 2026 Facebook posts on voting against tax dollars for foreign wars and on lobbying influence (the posts would not open and do not name where the money goes), a late-2023 statement demanding a ceasefire in Palestine, reported support for the BDS movement in a candidate survey, and a reported endorsement by Jewish Voice for Peace Action. None of an initial search’s sources could be confirmed as naming her; her identity and platform were confirmed directly against her campaign site.

In their words

Endorsements

Track AIPAC (2026 endorsement)

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 Duenas and Jewish safety, AIPAC, Israel/Palestine, military aid). Caution: an initial search confirmed no source as naming the candidate; the campaign-site items were confirmed by direct open on 2026-08-10.

U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel

  • Undated campaign platform, as read 2026-08-10 [Current position, dated by the date it was read; verified verbatim]: "I will never vote to send U.S. weapons or military aid to Israel." Campaign site.
  • Undated campaign platform, as read 2026-08-10 [Current position, dated by the date it was read; verified verbatim]: "U.S. tax dollars must not fund Israel's genocide in Gaza, forced displacement, collective punishment, apartheid, or illegal occupation." Campaign site.
  • 2026-08 [month-only inline date; source did not open, own-account Facebook; EXCLUDED from card]: "I will vote against sending more of our tax dollars to fund foreign wars and military aid. Our communities need investment here at home, not more weapons abroad." Does not name Israel; direction implicit; unlinked.
  • 2026-08 [month-only inline date; sources did not open, Facebook; EXCLUDED from card]: Posts criticizing federal spending on foreign armaments, arguing for universal childcare and healthcare over foreign defense aid. Unlinked.

Characterization of the conflict

  • Undated campaign platform, as read 2026-08-10 [Current position, dated by the date it was read; verified]: Site section titled "End the Genocide"; characterizes Israel's actions as genocide, forced displacement, collective punishment, apartheid, illegal occupation (see verified sentence above). Campaign site.
  • Late 2023 [inline date only; Months after October 7, 2023 if accurate; source did not open, Facebook; EXCLUDED from card]: Positioned herself as "demanding a Ceasefire in Palestine NOW" and called for a peace-centered foreign policy. Unlinked.
  • Undated [survey response; CHECKED 2026-08-11 and the claim in the search notes is CONTRADICTED; stays out of the card summary]: An initial search reported support for the BDS movement to press Israel to withdraw from occupied territories, remove the West Bank separation barrier, grant full equality to Arab-Palestinian citizens, and respect Palestinian refugees' rights. The iVoterGuide entry does name Angelica Duenas, CA-29, and it puts that statement to her as a question; her recorded answer is "Did not answer". She has taken no position here, and the claim in the search notes that she supported it does not stand.

Rhetoric and lobbying

  • Undated campaign page, as read 2026-08-10 [Current position, dated by the date it was read; verified verbatim]: "The U.S. must decouple from the government of Israel, this relationship has drawn us into repeated conflict"; "voting out politicians tied to AIPAC is the first step to restoring independent policy." AIPAC Explained.
  • Undated campaign site, as read 2026-08-10 [Current position, dated by the date it was read; verified verbatim]: "I have never taken money from AIPAC, and I never will." Donation-refusal pledge; not a weapons or funding position. Campaign site.
  • 2026-08 [month-only inline date; source did not open, Facebook; EXCLUDED from card]: Posts criticizing pro-Israel lobbying groups' influence in primaries, arguing lobbying networks push candidates toward foreign policy interests over local priorities. Unlinked.

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

  • 2026-08 [month-only inline date; source did not open, Facebook; EXCLUDED from card]: Attributed statement: "the fight against deadly anti-Semitic conspiracy theories is only made harder when pro-Israel lobby groups work to undermine democracy at home in order to ensure unconditional support for the Israeli government." Not found on her AIPAC Explained page when opened; unlinked; needs a primary source.
  • Undated [source does not confirm it names her; EXCLUDED from card]: Reported endorsement by Jewish Voice for Peace Action. iVoterGuide entry (different candidate ID from the survey entry above; naming unconfirmed).
  • Undated: No standalone platform on domestic antisemitism or Jewish safety; her general safety platform focuses on community-based public safety reform. One supporting source is a Facebook post about Steve Hill, a CA-37 candidate (would not open); wrong-person contamination, disregarded.

Identity sources

Also in this race

  1. ✗ Luz M. Rivas (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.