But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. How we check
Janelle Stelson
- Backed with $8K by PACs we track that support U.S. weapons funding for the government of Israel (lifetime)
- Endorsed by DMFI PAC
Asked in May 2026 whether she would support continued U.S. weapons sales to the government of Israel, Stelson answered: "It's not what I think about these things, it's what everybody here thinks about things", pledging to follow the district. She urges a larger U.S. role in Gaza.
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You asked Janelle Stelson where they stand.
Deep Dive
Stelson is the Democratic nominee in Pennsylvania's 10th District, a longtime local television anchor who nearly won this seat in 2024 and is running again.
Her 2026 answer is a deliberate deferral. Asked by the Pennsylvania Capital-Star whether she would support continued weapons sales to Israel, she said: "It's not what I think about these things, it's what everybody here thinks about things. We have situations on both sides where people feel very strongly, and I'm looking forward to listening to them and pivoting to whatever the district thinks we need to be doing." In the same interview she distinguished supporting Israel from supporting Prime Minister Netanyahu, said "what's going on breaks everybody's hearts when you see the video of the things that have happened", asked that the United States "take not just a mediator role, but help people get back on their feet", and added: "I think it's important we keep our eyes on a two-state solution too."
Her 2024 answers were firmer. When the administration paused some heavy arms shipments she told Jewish Insider "we need to tread lightly" and "This is an ally, and our allies need to be able to depend on us", backed what the outlet reported as Israel's right to root out and decimate Hamas, and criticized her opponent's vote against the April 2024 package pairing Israel aid with humanitarian aid for Gaza. She also said then that Israeli voters, not American leaders, should decide who governs Israel.
Set side by side, her record documents a shift from stated support for arms deliveries in 2024 to listening-first in 2026, in her own words on both ends, and this card carries both.
The record
• Wrote "No." when asked in the Jewish Federation of Greater Harrisburg's 2024 primary questionnaire whether she would have signed the November 2023 House ceasefire letter; the same questionnaire records her opposition to boycotts of Israel.
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. Backed with $8K by DMFI (FEC filings); endorsed by DMFI PAC.
The money
$8K in lifetime support from the five lobbying groups we track
In their words
Democratic Majority for Israel PAC (2024) · Democratic Majority for Israel PAC (2026) · Jewish Democratic Council of America (2026)
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, 2026-05-15] The Pennsylvania Capital-Star's primary profile. Opened and confirmed word for word, including the outlet's own framing sentence: "Asked if she would support continued weapons sales to Israel, she equivocated." Her full answer is quoted on the card. This carrier was located by search: our first search named the outlet without supplying its address, offering WITF's companion piece instead, which opens and confirms the substance secondhand ("she wants the U.S. to be more active in negotiating the war in Gaza but that she still supports Israel, if not Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu").
- [Position, 2024-06-17] Jewish Insider's interview: "we need to tread lightly" on the paused shipments, "This is an ally, and our allies need to be able to depend on us", and the outlet's report that she backed Israel's right to root out and decimate Hamas. Opened and confirmed.
- [Position, 2024-04-25, carrier does not open] A FOX43 interview is reported in which she criticized her opponent for voting against the $95 billion package and called Israel "our most staunch ally in the Middle East". The address returns 403 on every attempt; the substance is consistent with her verified Jewish Insider interview and the wordings stay unquoted here. A local aggregator's Facebook post reproduces related material and does not open reliably.
- Her prior record on this card, from earlier verified work, includes that she said she would not have signed the November 2023 House ceasefire letter.
U.S. aid to Palestinians
- [Position, 2026-05-15] From the Capital-Star interview, confirmed: "These are things I'd really like to see the United States take not just a mediator role, but help people get back on their feet." The card renders this as urging a larger U.S. role in Gaza.
- [Position, 2024-04-25, unresolved carrier] The FOX43 report has her supporting humanitarian aid to Gaza alongside military aid to Israel; unquoted for the carrier reason above.
Characterization of the conflict
- [Position, 2026-05-15] Confirmed from the Capital-Star: "what's going on breaks everybody's hearts when you see the video of the things that have happened", support for Israel distinguished from support for its Prime Minister, and "I think it's important we keep our eyes on a two-state solution too."
- [Position, 2024-06-17] Jewish Insider reports her backing "Israel's right to decimate Hamas however it sees fit"; the outlet's rendering, recorded as such.
Related rhetoric and lobbying
- [Position, 2024-06-17] From the same Jewish Insider interview: she distanced herself from Senator Schumer's call for new Israeli elections ("It's very important that Israeli citizens are the ones who decide who leads their country") and said her opponent had "a pretty disturbing history of antisemitism", her characterization of him, recorded here as her words about an opponent rather than adopted.
- Endorsement notes from Democratic Jewish Outreach Pennsylvania appear at the organization's own page; we could not corroborate broader endorsement claims. Tracked funding totals appear as a badge on this card.
Safety and antisemitism (context)
- [Position, 2024-04-23] Her written answers to the Jewish Federation of Greater Harrisburg's candidate questionnaire: "I strongly condemn antisemitism in our communities, schools, and the alarming rise of antisemites in American politics", with a pledge to support the national-strategy resolution, and her criticism of her opponent over praise for a commentator. Opens; her own written answers.
- [Position, 2024-06-17] Jewish Insider reports her tying rising antisemitism to fading Holocaust awareness and committing to education efforts and "any legislation that aims to stamp out extremism and hate".
Race and status context
- The Democratic nominee in one of this cycle's most competitive districts, in a rematch; the sitting member's card carries his own record, including his explanation of the vote she criticized in 2024.
Also in this race
- ✗Supports Scott Perry (Republican)
All Pennsylvania candidates.
See everyone on the Pennsylvania ballot →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.