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

Eric Sorensen

Democrat · U.S. House, Illinois District 17
✗Supported sending weapons or funding in 4 of 6 tracked votes

Sorensen is reported to have declined calls for an arms embargo, and told WVIK in October 2024: "I think we have to separate the good people of Israel and the Jewish people from somebody like Benjamin Netanyahu. Who is, I don't think, behaving on the responsibility that he should."

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Deep Dive

Sorensen represents Illinois's 17th District in northwestern Illinois and is running for re-election.

His clearest statement distinguishes the Israeli government from Israel itself. In an October 2024 WVIK interview he said: "I think we have to separate the good people of Israel and the Jewish people from somebody like Benjamin Netanyahu. Who is, I don't think, behaving on the responsibility that he should. But understanding there has to be a situation here. Where the people of Gaza, the people on the West Bank, the people of Lebanon, the people of Syria. Have the ability to live their lives and have their self-determinance." Earlier that month, meeting Palestinian-rights advocates in the Quad Cities, he is reported to have declined their call for a U.S. arms embargo or an end to military aid.

On the aid going the other way he has been specific. At a June 2024 press conference he said: "We have to make sure that we take out Hamas. But we can't just leave the people of Gaza and the people of the West Bank just out to dry, because their homes are gone, their businesses are gone."

The record

Supported sending weapons or funding in 4 of 6 tracked votes

Committees

House Committee on Armed Services

Floor votes
H.R. 6126 - Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act2023-11-02 · Passed 226-196
✓ Voted No
voted against sending it
H.R. 8034 - Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 20242024-04-20 · Passed 366-58
✗ Voted Yes
supported sending it
H.R. 8369 - Israel Security Assistance Support Act2024-05-16 · Passed 224-187
✓ Voted No
voted against sending it
H.R. 7217 - Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 20242024-02-06 · Failed 250-180 (needed 2/3 under suspension)
✗ Voted Yes
supported sending it
H.Amdt. 55 to H.R. 4016 - strike $500M for Israeli Cooperative Programs2025-07-18 · Failed 6-422 (only 6 voted to cut)
✗ Voted No
voted against limiting it
H.R. 8595 - Massie amendment (Part A No. 8) to bar FY27 funds for Israel and cut $3.3B in Foreign Military Financing2026-07-15 · Failed 104-314
✗ Voted No
voted against limiting it
Bill sponsorship
H.R. 3565 - Block the Bombs ActWould bar transfer of 2,000-lb/BLU-109 bunker busters, JDAMs, 120mm tank rounds, and 155mm artillery shells to Israel. Does not affect Iron
Not sponsoringhas not backed this restriction bill
H.R. 1229 - United States-Israel Defense Partnership Act of 2025Formalizes/expands bilateral defense cooperation with Israel.
Co-sponsorbacks this bill to send more support
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 more than half of their recorded tracked votes. (Supported sending weapons or funding in 4 of 6 tracked votes.)

The money

$17K in lifetime support from the five lobbying groups we track

Lifetime support from the five lobbying groups we track
AIPAC PAC: $10,000 · DMFI: $7,000
Support-only OpenFEC data (as of 2026-10-03). Opposition independent expenditures are excluded.
Who these lobbying groups are
AIPAC$10,000The American Israel Public Affairs Committee; its PAC backs candidates it sees as strengthening U.S. ties with the government of Israel, including continued U.S. military aid.DMFI PAC$7,000Democratic Majority for Israel's PAC; calls itself the home for pro-Israel Democrats and backs Democratic candidates who support a strong U.S. alliance with the government of Israel.Direct contributions and independent expenditures supporting this candidate from the five lobbying groups we track, every cycle each has filed, through 2026. Excludes earmarked and conduit contributions.
Endorsed by AIPAC +1 more
AIPACThe American Israel Public Affairs Committee; its PAC backs candidates it sees as strengthening U.S. ties with the government of Israel, including continued U.S. military aid.DMFI PACDemocratic Majority for Israel's PAC; calls itself the home for pro-Israel Democrats and backs Democratic candidates who support a strong U.S. alliance with the government of Israel.These endorsements come from groups that back sending U.S. weapons and funding to the government of Israel.

In their words

“I think we have to separate the good people of Israel and the Jewish people from somebody like Benjamin Netanyahu. Who is, I don't think, behaving on the responsibility that he should.”
Source ↗, 2024-10-16
“We can't just leave the people of Gaza and the people of the West Bank just out to dry, because their homes are gone, their businesses are gone.”
Source ↗, 2024-06-07
Endorsements

AIPAC (2026 endorsement) · DMFI PAC (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

  • [Position, 2024-10-16] WVIK interview, opened and confirmed word for word: "I think we have to separate the good people of Israel and the Jewish people from somebody like Benjamin Netanyahu. Who is, I don't think, behaving on the responsibility that he should. But understanding there has to be a situation here. Where the people of Gaza, the people on the West Bank, the people of Lebanon, the people of Syria. Have the ability to live their lives and have their self-determinance." The transcript's sentence fragments are the outlet's own rendering of speech and are preserved rather than smoothed.
  • [Position, 2024-10-04] Meeting Quad Cities Palestinian-rights advocates, he is reported to have said he was not agreeable to calls for a U.S. arms embargo or ending military aid to Israel. Source: WVIK coverage of the coalition's arms-embargo rally. Not separately verified; stated attributively on the card and in the deep dive.
  • [After October 7, 2023-11-03] Statement supporting the $14.3 billion emergency aid request for Israel while objecting to House Republican leadership conditioning it on domestic spending cuts. From the weeks right after October 7; not used on the card.
  • His recorded votes on the tracked bills appear as badges on this card. They are mixed, and the statements above are his own account of the distinction he draws between the Israeli government and the aid itself.

U.S. aid to Palestinians

  • [Position, 2024-06-07] WCBU press conference, confirmed verbatim: "We have to make sure that we take out Hamas," and "we can't just leave the people of Gaza and the people of the West Bank just out to dry, because their homes are gone, their businesses are gone." The article adds that he hoped the prime minister would listen to diplomatic pressure for a ceasefire.
  • [After October 7, 2023-12-18] WGLT, confirmed verbatim: "We need to make sure that the people in Gaza are taken care of. Hamas does not have the grip over their security, their safety, their well being anymore. We have to expedite humanitarian aid. We also have to make sure that Hamas has no place to be able to do terrorist actions like they did on October 7th."

Characterization of the conflict

  • [After October 7, 2023-12-18] Confirmed verbatim, same WGLT piece: "We have to look at what is going to cause stability, security, safety. And we have to have a shared sense of humanity for what's going on. I'm increasingly troubled at what's going on in Gaza, as it seems that perhaps the Netanyahu government doesn't, isn't playing by the rules."
  • [After October 7, 2023-10-20] Joined CBS News from Capitol Hill to discuss the war and the Speaker race.
  • [Position, 2024-06-10] Said he remained undecided about attending Prime Minister Netanyahu's July address, wanting a focus on diplomacy (WMBD). Not opened.

⚠ Wrong-person sources

Also in this race

  1. ? Dillan Vancil (Republican)

All Illinois 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.