Mary Gay Scanlon

Democrat · U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 5

In September 2025 Scanlon cosponsored a bill to bar transfers of bombs and artillery shells to the government of Israel without new legislation and assurances. She has issued no statement about it. In April 2024 she backed a package she said carried "critical aid for Israel" and aid for Palestinians.

Mary Gay Scanlon is a Democrat who has represented Pennsylvania's 5th District, covering Delaware County and parts of Philadelphia and Montgomery County, since a November 2018 special election. She sits on the Judiciary and Rules Committees and is the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary subcommittee on the Constitution. She faces Republican Nick Manganaro on November 3, 2026.

In 2024 she explained herself at length, twice. On February 6 she voted against a standalone Israel funding bill and said it was written to politicize support for Israel while denying military aid to Ukraine and humanitarian aid to Ukraine and Gaza, adding in the same statement that she had stood with House Democrats to strongly support Israel and that Congress must act to support Israel and surge humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians in Gaza. Ten weeks later she voted to bring the spring supplemental package to the floor and said the package included critical aid for Israel and urgent humanitarian assistance for Palestinians.

Her record on weapons changed in 2025, and she did not announce the change. On September 9, 2025 she signed on to the Block the Bombs Act, a bill that would stop the President from transferring bunker busting bombs, MK80 series bombs, small diameter bombs, guidance kits, tank ammunition and artillery shells including white phosphorus to the government of Israel unless Congress passes a law setting out the purpose and the government of Israel gives written assurances that the weapons will be used in accordance with international humanitarian law. Rep. Delia Ramirez, who wrote the bill, still listed Scanlon among its 73 cosponsors in June 2026, and WHYY reported the Pennsylvania signatures at the time. Two of the three Pennsylvania members who signed gave WHYY a statement explaining why. Scanlon did not, and her office has published nothing about the bill.

Every item her congressional office published between 2018 and September 2026 was read for this card, 422 in all. She has said nothing about U.S. weapons or money for the government of Israel since April 2024, a period covering the bill she cosponsored and the votes recorded on this card. Her campaign site has no issues page and raises none of it. Her earlier statements, her March 2025 letter on the detention of Mahmoud Khalil, and her work on antisemitism are on the research page. Ask Scanlon directly and send us the reply: it goes on this page in her own words.

Tracked votes: opposed sending U.S. weapons or funding to the government of Israel in 3 of 5 recorded votes.

Research

Our research began with a search on 2026-08-21, whose results were treated as leads rather than as evidence, and every page cited below was opened and read on 2026-09-07 unless the entry says otherwise. Her congressional press index was walked year by year from 2018 to 2026 and all 422 items were read, along with her campaign site. Bands: Position (2024-01-26 onward), Reaction window (2023-10-07 to 2024-01-25), Earlier record (before 2023-10-07), Undated. Mary Gay Scanlon is a Democrat who has represented Pennsylvania's 5th District since a November 2018 special election and is the Democratic nominee in PA-05 in 2026. This card replaces an older summary of her record, and everything below was checked again at the source. Her recorded votes appear as badges on this card and are not restated here.

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

U.S. aid to Palestinians

Characterization of the conflict

Related rhetoric and lobbying

Safety and antisemitism (context, not a position on what America sends)

Earlier record

Not on the card, and why

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

Also in this race: Nick Manganaro (Republican) · All Pennsylvania 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.