Josh Riley
Riley calls the alliance “critically important” and, pressed at a town hall to back an arms embargo, declined, calling instead for a ceasefire, humanitarian aid for Gaza and the hostages’ release. After visiting the region he described “a severe and undeniable humanitarian crisis in Gaza”.
Riley represents New York’s 19th District, elected in 2024 in one of the country’s most competitive seats, and he is the sitting member.
His line has been consistent under pressure from both directions. In a 2024 interview he called the American-Israeli alliance “critically important”, saying “Israel is surrounded by terrorist organizations whose mission is to eliminate the Israeli state and we can’t allow that to happen”. At an October 2025 Sullivan County town hall, attendees pressed him to back an arms embargo and he declined, calling instead for a ceasefire, humanitarian aid and the hostages’ release, and saying the region must “come out of this with a real plan that allows Palestinians and Israelis to live side by side in peace and with security”.
In August 2025 he traveled to Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza border on a delegation trip sponsored by the American Israel Education Foundation, and returned describing “a severe and undeniable humanitarian crisis in Gaza” while saying Hamas was “inflicting unimaginable suffering in the region”, and that Americans can stand with allies “while still speaking honestly (and critically) to their government”. The next month he co-signed a letter to Prime Minister Netanyahu affirming Israel’s “right and obligation, within the requirements of international law, to defend its people” while backing negotiations toward a two-state solution.
In March 2026, after U.S. strikes in the region, he urged Congress to reassert its war powers and questioned overseas military spending without constituent input; his two recorded tracked votes, both against cutting aid, appear as badges on this card.
Tracked votes: backed sending U.S. weapons or funding to the government of Israel in 2 of 2 recorded votes.
Research
U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel
- His two recorded tracked votes appear as badges on this card, both against cutting amendments; he took office in 2025, so the 2023-24 bills predate his service.
- [Position, 2024-09, reported 2025-10-22] The Ithacan carries his 2024 interview: the alliance “critically important” and the surrounded-by-terrorist-organizations sentence. The piece itself reports local criticism of his stance; the outlet’s framing is not adopted.
- [Position, 2025-10-05, reported 10-08] WJFF Radio Catskill’s town-hall account: he declined attendees’ arms-embargo calls, backing a ceasefire, humanitarian aid and hostage release instead. This is the sharpest transfers-relevant fact on the record and it leads the card.
- [Position, 2026-03-05] A county Democratic committee’s item on his war-powers concerns after U.S. strikes; a party organization’s page, used for his reported position with that noted; Iran material stays off the card front.
- [Position, 2026-07, uncorroborated] A statement on security-spending amendments reiterating defensive support for allies with diplomacy and aid prioritized; no carrier was supplied. Recorded as reported.
U.S. aid to Palestinians
- [Position, 2025-08-15, reported 08-19] 607 News Now on his post-trip statement: the humanitarian-crisis sentence on the card, with his plea for more aid to civilians. His own post sits on his official page, which requires a login and does not open.
- [Position, 2025-10-05] The town-hall call for humanitarian aid, above.
Characterization of the conflict
- [Position, 2025-08-15] From the post-trip statement via 607 News Now: “there can be no lasting peace for either Israelis or Palestinians so long as Iran continues to arm and finance terrorist proxies like Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis” (Iran content stays off the card front) and Hamas “inflicting unimaginable suffering in the region—torturing hostages, depriving innocent Gazans of basic needs, terrorizing Israelis, and unnecessarily prolonging the war that it started on October 7”.
- [Position, 2025-08, quoted 2025-10-10] The River Reporter: standing with allies “while still speaking honestly (and critically) to their government”, and “none of us supports violence against anyone because of how they worship”.
- [Position, 2025-09-25] The Raskin-led letter to Prime Minister Netanyahu, a multi-signer PDF: “barbaric” for the October 7 attacks, the international-law defense sentence, two-state negotiations. Multi-signer, stated as such.
Related rhetoric and lobbying
- [Position, 2025-08-11] The American Israel Education Foundation delegation trip, meeting Israel’s president and the Palestinian Authority’s prime minister; Jewish Insider’s piece describes the trip cohort without naming him in the fetched text, and the local outlets above name him on it directly.
- [Position, 2025-10] His defenses of the trip to constituents, per the River Reporter above and a local advocacy page recording protest against his stance (the critics’ own page, their framing not adopted).
- Tracked funding totals appear as a badge on this card; his committee support this cycle is the largest of any candidate in this panel.
Safety and antisemitism (context)
- [Position, 2026-03-08, single carrier] Attended the Cornell Hillel center groundbreaking, per the university’s Chronicle.
- [Position, 2026-06, single tracker] Co-sponsored the Jewish American Security Act, per BillTrack50; the registry’s bill number is not repeated on the card.
Race and status context
- Sitting representative in one of this cycle’s priority districts; a state senator has launched a challenge, per WAMC. The Jewish Democratic Council of America lists him among endorsees.
Also in this race: Peter Oberacker (Republican) · All New York candidates.
See the full record →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 the interactive card for votes, funding and contact details.