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

Donna Brandenburg

Other · Governor, Michigan
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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.

No recorded votes on the bills we track. We found nothing in their own words about Israel, Gaza or the war.

Asked in a 2022 candidate questionnaire whether she supported the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel, Brandenburg selected "Choose not to answer". She answered most other questions on that form. No later statement has been located.

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Deep Dive

Brandenburg is a Michigan business owner who has run for governor before and is running again in 2026.

In her 2022 iVoterGuide candidate questionnaire she was asked whether she supported the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement to pressure Israel. She selected "Choose not to answer". Asked what the United States should do about Islamic terrorism, she is recorded as "Did not answer".

She answered most of the rest of that questionnaire, including on school choice, immigration and religious liberty, which is what makes the two non-answers a choice rather than an unreturned form. Nothing more recent has been located, and Michigan's governor has no role in federal aid or arms decisions.

Research log

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

Rhetoric and lobbying

  • 2022 [Earlier record; VERIFIED 2026-08-12; leads the card]: In her iVoterGuide questionnaire for the November 8, 2022 Michigan general election, asked whether she supported the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement "to pressure Israel to withdraw from occupied territories...", she selected **"Choose not to answer"**. Asked "What should the United States do to help eradicate the threat of Islamic terrorism?", the page records **"Did not answer"**.

She gave substantive answers elsewhere on the same form, including "Strongly Agree" on school choice and on Judeo-Christian values, and an answer on immigration. So these are selective non-answers.

U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel

  • No position located.

Verification, 2026-08-12, and a wrong-person url an initial search also supplied

The page above was read in full, 1,074 words, and is her own profile.

An initial search cited a second iVoterGuide url for her, `ivoterguide.com/candidate/54295/race/8525/election/898`. That page is the profile of **Gary Mitchell**, a candidate for Michigan State Representative in District 42. It is not hers and nothing rests on it.

**Two quotations an initial search attributed to her are not used.** It reported that in campaign questionnaires she said foreign interventions are "not our business" and that "we do not need to police the world". Neither phrase is on the verified page, so neither is published.

The generated record, kept

Everything below comes from an initial search’s own notes, written before this card was rewritten, and is kept unchanged so that what was looked for, and what came back, stays on the record. Where it says nothing was found on this question, read it against the verified item above.

What was looked for, and what came back

  • **U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel:** Donna Brandenburg has not taken a detailed public stance or issued direct policy proposals specifically regarding U.S. military aid or weapons sales to Israel.
  • **Characterization of the conflict:** There are no known public statements, policy positions, or speeches in which Brandenburg personally characterizes the broader Israel/Palestine conflict.
  • **Rhetoric and lobbying:** Brandenburg has not made formal candidate statements or taken specific actions regarding Israel-related lobbying or political rhetoric.
  • **Safety and antisemitism:** Brandenburg has not published a formal public safety or policy platform specifically addressing antisemitism.

The rest of what an initial search returned on the questions with no answer

Each line above is the first sentence of what an initial search returned for that question. Where it said more after that sentence, the whole passage is reproduced here word for word, so the qualification stands on the record alongside the finding. Em dashes are rendered as hyphens to satisfy house style; no wording is changed.

### U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel Donna Brandenburg has not taken a detailed public stance or issued direct policy proposals specifically regarding U.S. military aid or weapons sales to Israel.

Her broader foreign policy stance aligns with a non-interventionist platform. In campaign questionnaires during her gubernatorial candidacies, she stated that foreign interventions are "not our business" and that "we do not need to police the world". However, when asked directly in candidate surveys about specific policies involving Israel (such as foreign policy choices or the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement), she selected "Choose not to answer".

### Characterization of the conflict There are no known public statements, policy positions, or speeches in which Brandenburg personally characterizes the broader Israel/Palestine conflict. While guest commentators on her online platform, the *Brandenburg News Network*, have discussed the region's conflict (such as in a November 2024 broadcast), Brandenburg herself has not released official candidate statements defining or taking a personal position on the conflict.

### Rhetoric and lobbying Brandenburg has not made formal candidate statements or taken specific actions regarding Israel-related lobbying or political rhetoric. In voter guide questionnaires, she declined to answer specific questions regarding the BDS movement and Israel-focused policy initiatives, adhering to her general campaign stance against U.S. involvement in foreign affairs.

### Safety and antisemitism Brandenburg has not published a formal public safety or policy platform specifically addressing antisemitism.

On June 19, 2026, she made a brief reference to the topic on her official campaign Telegram channel, writing about how the label "anti-Semitism" is utilized in political discourse, stating that "'Anti-Semitism' has become a universal override... Real anti-Semitism...". Beyond this social media post, she has not outlined explicit platform proposals regarding antisemitism or community safety measures for religious minorities.

Sources consulted and read (7)

Not found

  • No position located on U.S. weapons, arms sales or military funding for the government of Israel.
  • No position located on U.S. aid to Palestinians, UNRWA or Gaza humanitarian funding.
  • This is a record of what was checked on 2026-08-11, not a claim that no statement exists anywhere.

Also in this race

  1. ? Jocelyn Benson (Democrat)
  2. ✗ John James (Republican)
  3. – Anthony Hudson (Libertarian)
  4. – Douglas Campbell (Green)

All Michigan 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.