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

Kimberly Overman

Democrat · U.S. House, Florida District 12
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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.

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.

Two reviewers, reading the public record as a whole, agree: Her August 2026 platform sets legal and human-rights conditions on U.S. military aid without saying it should stop or continue, which is conditions alone. Reviewed by hand on 2026-09-28. This candidate has no recorded tracked floor votes.

On the government of Israel and the Palestinians, Overman's August 2026 platform says U.S. military aid and foreign assistance should comply with U.S. law, international law, and internationally recognized human rights standards, and that American taxpayer dollars should never be used in ways that harm civilians.

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Deep Dive

Kimberly Overman is the Democratic nominee in Florida's 12th District, which after this year's redistricting covers Pasco County and a stretch of Hillsborough County. She is a certified financial planner who sat on the Hillsborough County Commission from 2018 to 2022 and chaired it, and she was the primary caregiver first for her adult son and then for her grandson. She won the Democratic primary on August 18, 2026 with 52.7 percent of the vote, and faces Representative Gus Bilirakis and Branden Scrivener on November 3.

She has never held federal office, so none of the congressional votes this site tracks are hers, and her campaign site's issues page has seven headings, all domestic. Her position on this question is not there. It is in the newsletter her campaign publishes, in a piece dated August 12, 2026 and headed “Foreign Policy, Human Rights, National Security, and Responsible U.S. Leadership”, which is one of the fourteen pieces her campaign lists as her platform for the district. Under a heading reading “Palestine, Israel, and Human Rights Accountability” she wrote: “I support recognizing Palestinian people and believe U.S. military aid and foreign assistance should comply with U.S. law, international law, and internationally recognized human rights standards. American taxpayer dollars should never be used in ways that contribute to human rights violations, collective punishment, forced displacement, or harm to civilians.” The next paragraph says the use of military assistance should be subject to accountability, transparency, congressional oversight, and compliance with applicable legal standards, and that humanitarian aid must reach civilians in need.

The same section opens by saying both the people of Israel and the people of Palestine have the right to exist, live in safety, exercise self-determination, and defend themselves, and that the United States should support the human rights, dignity, safety and self-determination of both. It then says no nation, government, military or armed group should be excused from compliance with international law or fundamental human rights standards, and that she does not believe war crimes, collective punishment, forced displacement, attacks on civilians, or violations of international humanitarian law should be accepted as legitimate means of defense. The piece does not say which government or which armed group she has in mind at any point, and it names no incident. Elsewhere in it she supports congressional authorization requirements for military action and reporting requirements for United States involvement abroad, and says military power should not be the first tool of national security.

That is the whole of it in her own words. She names no arms transfer, no weapons system, no dollar figure, no memorandum of understanding and no bill or amendment, and she does not say whether the conditions she describes are met now or what she would do if they were not. She has answered Ballotpedia's candidate questionnaire at length, including open questions about what she is passionate about and what the country's greatest challenges are, and none of those answers touches this subject; the form does not ask about it. All forty-six pieces in her newsletter were read and this is the only one that does. The rest of what our research found is on her research page.

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 2026-09-27) 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

“I support recognizing Palestinian people and believe U.S. military aid and foreign assistance should comply with U.S. law, international law, and internationally recognized human rights standards.”
Source ↗, 2026-08-12
“American taxpayer dollars should never be used in ways that contribute to human rights violations, collective punishment, forced displacement, or harm to civilians.”
Source ↗, 2026-08-12
“Both the people of Israel and the people of Palestine have the right to exist, live in safety, exercise self-determination, and defend themselves.”
Source ↗, 2026-08-12
“I do not believe war crimes, collective punishment, forced displacement, attacks on civilians, or violations of international humanitarian law should be accepted as legitimate means of defense.”
Source ↗, 2026-08-12
“The use of military assistance should be subject to accountability, transparency, congressional oversight, and compliance with applicable legal standards.”
Source ↗, 2026-08-12

Research log

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

Our research for this card began with a search run on 2026-09-07, and every page below was opened and read on 2026-09-08. Her whole campaign site was read, page by page, along with all forty-six pieces in the newsletter her campaign publishes, her Ballotpedia page and the Ballotpedia page for this race. Bands: Position (2024-01-26 onward), Reaction window (2023-10-07 to 2024-01-25), Earlier record (before 2023-10-07), Undated. She has held no federal office, so there are no recorded votes on this record and no tracked funding.

U.S. military aid and weapons to the government of Israel

  • [Position, 2026-08-12] Her campaign newsletter piece “Foreign Policy, Human Rights, National Security, and Responsible U.S. Leadership”, signed for her campaign and subtitled “Where Kimberly Overman Stands on Foreign Policy, Human Rights, and Responsible U.S. Leadership”. Under the heading “Palestine, Israel, and Human Rights Accountability” it reads, in full: “Both the people of Israel and the people of Palestine have the right to exist, live in safety, exercise self-determination, and defend themselves. The United States should support the human rights, dignity, safety, and self-determination of both Israelis and Palestinians. At the same time, no nation, government, military, or armed group should be excused from compliance with international law or fundamental human rights standards. I do not believe war crimes, collective punishment, forced displacement, attacks on civilians, or violations of international humanitarian law should be accepted as legitimate means of defense. I support recognizing Palestinian people and believe U.S. military aid and foreign assistance should comply with U.S. law, international law, and internationally recognized human rights standards. American taxpayer dollars should never be used in ways that contribute to human rights violations, collective punishment, forced displacement, or harm to civilians. The use of military assistance should be subject to accountability, transparency, congressional oversight, and compliance with applicable legal standards. Humanitarian aid must reach civilians in need. Civilian lives matter regardless of nationality, religion, ethnicity, or background. Accountability should apply consistently, and human rights should not depend on which side of a conflict someone is on. The United States should use diplomacy, humanitarian engagement, congressional oversight, and principled leadership to help advance long-term security, human dignity, and a just and lasting peace.”
  • [Position, 2026-08-12] The same piece, on military assistance generally: “Military assistance should include oversight and accountability to ensure resources are used effectively and consistently with American interests and democratic principles”, written in the section about Ukraine. And, in its closing section: “I will support strong, accountable American leadership that protects national security, upholds human rights, respects civil liberties, strengthens congressional oversight, promotes diplomacy, and ensures that U.S. military and foreign assistance comply with U.S. law, international law, and international human rights standards.”
  • [Position, 2026-08-15] Her platform post, “Here Is Where I Stand: My Platform for Florida's 12th Congressional District”, which lists the foreign policy piece above among fourteen numbered planks. Her campaign site reproduces the same list on its Kimberly on Substack page, which introduces the newsletter as where she “works through the issues facing FL-12 in her own words — no talking points, no press filter”.
  • Nothing more specific located, at any date. No statement was found in which she names an arms transfer, a weapons system, a dollar figure, Foreign Military Financing, the ten-year memorandum of understanding, or any bill or amendment on this subject, and none in which she says whether the standards she sets out are being met.
  • Our research reported a Florida Politics candidate questionnaire of August 3, 2026 in which she is quoted at length on this question, including support for “funding that strengthens Israel's defensive capabilities and protects civilians from attack” and a rejection of a “blank check”. That address did not open on 2026-09-08, so none of those words is written on this card. Her own account of the same profile, “Florida Politics Asked. Here is What I Told Them.” of August 3, 2026, was opened and read in full: it covers affordability, healthcare, congressional oversight of the executive, and artificial intelligence, and does not mention Israel, Palestine, foreign aid or the military. The address that could not be opened, printed rather than linked, is https://floridapolitics.com/archives/810756-meet-the-cd-12-democratic-candidates-kimberly-overman/

U.S. aid to Palestinians

  • [Position, 2026-08-12] From the same piece: “Humanitarian aid must reach civilians in need.” The section on Sudan adds: “I support humanitarian aid, civilian protection efforts, refugee assistance, and international cooperation to address large-scale displacement, famine, conflict, and human suffering.”
  • Nothing located that names Gaza, the West Bank, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or a Palestinian assistance account, at any date. The word Gaza appears nowhere on her campaign site or in any of her forty-six newsletter pieces.

Characterization of the conflict

  • [Position, 2026-08-12] The passage quoted in full above is the whole of it. She uses the words war crimes, collective punishment, forced displacement, attacks on civilians and violations of international humanitarian law, and says she does not believe any of them should be accepted as legitimate means of defense. She does not apply any of those words to a named party, a named incident or a named date, and the words genocide, apartheid, self-defense and terrorism do not appear in the section.
  • Nothing located, at any other date. Her five newsletter pieces from 2025, which are about federal grant freezes, conflicts of interest, the House budget and Project 2025, mention none of this.

Israel-related rhetoric and lobbying

  • Nothing located from her, at any date. She has published nothing about pro-Israel lobbying organizations or about political money connected to them. Her campaign describes itself as “powered by people, not special interests” and her platform's plank on money in politics names no organization.
  • [Position, 2026-07] Her campaign's page recording an endorsement from Emgage Action. Emgage Action is a Muslim American civic engagement organization that endorses candidates and lobbies Congress. The page is written by her campaign and says the endorsement “reflects both alignment on the issues” and a commitment to “a foreign and domestic policy grounded in human rights and accountability”. The only words in it that are hers are about affordability, healthcare, civil rights, public safety and opportunity. An endorsement is other people's recommendation and no position is inferred from one.
  • [Position, 2026-08] Her campaign's page recording an endorsement from Muslims for Democracy and Fairness PAC 22, a Tampa Bay political action committee formed in 2018. The page is her campaign's writing and quotes nothing from her on this subject.

Safety and antisemitism (context, not an answer to what America sends)

  • Nothing located, at any date. Neither antisemitism nor Islamophobia appears in anything she has written. Her campaign's Emgage Action page says she “unequivocally denounces Islamophobia and all forms of discrimination”; those are her campaign's words about her rather than her own, and they are recorded here rather than on the card.
  • [Position, 2026-08-11] Her newsletter piece “Every Community Deserves a Voice” records that her public service included working with “African American churches, Muslim organizations, Jewish congregations, immigrant faith communities, interfaith organizations, and community advocacy groups”. It is about her county record and says nothing about this question.

The race

  • [Undated; read 2026-09-08] Ballotpedia: “Incumbent Gus M. Bilirakis, Kimberly Overman, and Branden Scrivener are running in the general election for U.S. House Florida District 12 on November 3, 2026.” She defeated Darren McAuley in the Democratic primary on August 18, 2026, taking 21,667 votes to his 19,450, 52.7 percent to 47.3. The Republican primary was cancelled and Bilirakis advanced from it unopposed. The same page records campaign receipts to July 29, 2026 of $186,813 for her and $1,588,538 for the incumbent.
  • [Position, 2026 cycle] Her Ballotpedia Candidate Connection answers, carried on the same page, run to more than a dozen questions answered at length, among them what areas of public policy she is personally passionate about, what she believes are the country's greatest challenges over the next decade, and what legacy she would like to leave. Her answers name affordability, healthcare, Social Security and Medicare, caregiving, immigration, voting rights, government accountability and the environment. On the greatest challenges question she wrote that “the United States must reestablish its role as a reliable partner on the global stage by honoring commitments and working cooperatively to address shared challenges”, which is the only sentence in any of them that looks outward, and it names no country. The form does not ask about Israel, Palestine or foreign aid.
  • [Position, 2026-08-18] WUSF's report of the primary result quotes her answer to WUSF's 2026 Voter Guide in full: “The biggest challenges facing our district are affordability, healthcare access and government accountability. Families are struggling with rising housing, insurance and utility costs. Healthcare is becoming less affordable and harder to access. Congress must lower costs, increase housing supply, protect healthcare access and restore trust through transparency, fiscal responsibility and problem-solving that puts people ahead of politics.” The guide's own candidate pages did not open for us.
  • [Undated; read 2026-09-08] Her campaign's issues page carries seven headings: affordable housing and cost of living, healthcare access, public safety and crime prevention, education and workforce development, veterans and military families, reproductive rights and personal freedom, and climate resilience and environmental protection. None is about foreign policy.
  • [Position, 2026-08-19] Creative Loafing Tampa Bay's report records the result and her victory speech, in which she cast the incumbent as the Washington status quo. It carries nothing on this subject.

Places that could not be read, so nothing is claimed from them

  • The Florida Politics candidate profile described above, https://floridapolitics.com/archives/810756-meet-the-cd-12-democratic-candidates-kimberly-overman/ , which did not open on any of three attempts. This is the only source our research offered for the answers it quoted on this question.
  • WUSF's 2026 Voter Guide itself, https://www.wusf.org/2026-voter-guide , whose candidate pages did not open. WUSF's own news report quotes her answer from it and was read.
  • Her campaign's accounts on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/OvermanforCongress/ , and her LinkedIn page, https://www.linkedin.com/in/koverman/ . Neither was read here.
  • The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's case against the incumbent, https://dccc.org/the-case-against-gus-bilirakis/ , which her campaign links from its news page. It is another organization's writing about her opponent and was not used.

Not on the card, and why

  • The Ukraine, Sudan, cybersecurity, trade, tariff and war powers material in the same August 2026 piece: out of scope. Its subjects are named on the research page so a reader can see what else the piece covers.
  • The housing, insurance, healthcare, education, criminal justice, immigration, labour, women's rights, democracy and climate material on her campaign site, in her Ballotpedia answers and across the other forty-five newsletter pieces: out of scope, and listed above so the absence is checkable.
  • The Florida Politics answers our research quoted: their only address did not open, so none of the words could be checked. The address is printed on the research page rather than linked.
  • Her endorsements, including those from Emgage Action and Muslims for Democracy and Fairness PAC 22: an endorsement is other people's recommendation rather than a statement by her. Both are recorded on the research page with a plain description of what the organizations are.
  • Her campaign's own description of her, including the sentence saying she denounces Islamophobia: those are the campaign's words about her rather than her own, and they are on the research page.
  • Gus Bilirakis's and Branden Scrivener's records: they belong on their own cards.

Sources retrieved for this card (address; opened or could not open; date)

  • https://kimberlyoverman.substack.com/p/foreign-policy-human-rights-national (opened; 2026-09-08; published 2026-08-12)
  • https://kimberlyoverman.substack.com/p/here-is-where-i-stand-my-platform (opened; 2026-09-08; published 2026-08-15)
  • https://kimberlyoverman.substack.com/p/florida-politics-asked-here-is-what (opened; 2026-09-08; published 2026-08-03)
  • https://kimberlyoverman.substack.com/p/every-community-deserves-a-voice (opened; 2026-09-08; published 2026-08-11)
  • https://kimberlyoverman.substack.com/archive?sort=new and all forty-six pieces listed there (opened; 2026-09-08; published 2025-01-28 to 2026-08-26)
  • https://kimberlyoverman.com/ , https://kimberlyoverman.com/issues/ , https://kimberlyoverman.com/issues/kimberly-on-substack/ , https://kimberlyoverman.com/meet-kimberly/ , https://kimberlyoverman.com/news-and-events/ and its news, events, press-release and endorsement pages, and the campaign's contact, volunteer, petition and policy pages (opened; 2026-09-08; every page the site lists)
  • https://kimberlyoverman.com/news-and-events/endorsements/endorsements-emgage-action-endorses-kimberly-overman-for-floridas-12th-congressional-district/ (opened; 2026-09-08)
  • https://kimberlyoverman.com/news-and-events/endorsements/endorsements-mdf-pac-22-endorses-kimberly-overman/ (opened; 2026-09-08)
  • https://ballotpedia.org/Kimberly_Overman (opened; 2026-09-08)
  • https://ballotpedia.org/Florida%27s_12th_Congressional_District_election,_2026 (opened; 2026-09-08)
  • https://www.wusf.org/politics-issues/2026-08-18/pasco-primary-results-2026-kimberly-overman-wins-primary-setting-up-face-off-against-us-rep-gus-bilirakis (opened; 2026-09-08; published 2026-08-18)
  • https://www.wusf.org/politics-issues/2026-08-12/democrats-face-uphill-battle-quest-to-wrest-the-seat-held-by-congressman-gus-bilirakis (opened; 2026-09-08; published 2026-08-12)
  • https://www.cltampa.com/news/tampa-bay-democratic-congressional-candidates-overman-kirschner-and-gray-win-primaries/ (opened; 2026-09-08; published 2026-08-19)
  • https://hoodline.com/2026/05/tampa-politico-overman-crosses-district-lines-to-take-on-bilirakis/ (opened; 2026-09-08; published 2026-05)
  • https://ivoterguide.com/race/31343/election/1464 (opened; 2026-09-08; names her but carries no profile and no questionnaire for her)
  • https://floridapolitics.com/archives/810756-meet-the-cd-12-democratic-candidates-kimberly-overman/ (could not open; 2026-09-08)
  • https://www.wusf.org/2026-voter-guide (opened, but its candidate pages did not display; 2026-09-08)
  • This is a record of what was checked on 2026-09-07 and 2026-09-08, not a claim that no other statement exists.

Also in this race

  1. ✗ Gus Bilirakis (Republican)
  2. ✓ Branden Scrivener (Other)

All Florida 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.