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

Mike Kennedy

Republican · U.S. House, Utah District 4
✗Supported sending weapons or funding in 2 of 2 tracked votes

Kennedy voted against both amendments to cut aid to Israel. His 2018 questionnaire answered “Strongly Agree” that the U.S. “should help defend Israel from attack by its enemies”, and his reported 2024 platform listed standing with Israel as a priority. His other foreign-policy commentary is on the research page.

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Deep Dive

Kennedy, a physician and former state legislator, has represented Utah’s 3rd District since January 2025 and is running in the 4th after redistricting. His two recorded votes appear as badges on this card: No on the amendment to cut $500 million for Israeli missile-defense programs, No on the 2026 amendment to cut $3.3 billion from aid to Israel.

His direct Israel record is thin for a sitting member. His 2018 Senate-primary iVoterGuide answer, verified: "Strongly Agree" that "The United States should help defend Israel from attack by its enemies", a prior cycle carried with its cycle stated. His February 2024 campaign materials reportedly listed "Ensure America Stands with Israel" among his priorities; no retrieved source verifies the phrase, so it stays reported. At a June 2024 primary debate he paired broad fiscal skepticism of foreign spending with that platform support.

Most of his located commentary concerns the 2026 U.S.-Israeli operations against Iran and stays on the research page: he backed the strikes while telling KSL Congress must keep the U.S. out of a "long-term protracted" conflict ("If we’re going to declare a war, Congress should do that"), and wrote a January 2026 op-ed on the moment. Activist petitions naming him over U.S. support for Israel appear in attributed voices only. AIPAC’s tracked support appears as a badge on this card.

Nothing located has him addressing U.S. aid to Palestinians or antisemitism directly.

The record

Supported sending weapons or funding in 2 of 2 tracked votes

Floor votes
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.
Not sponsoringhas not backed this support bill
Notable actions

• Vote record imported from official House Clerk roll calls for H.R. 6126, H.R. 8034, and H.R. 8369. Other position fields remain under investigation.

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 2 of 2 tracked votes.)

The money

$10K in lifetime support from the five lobbying groups we track

Lifetime support from the five lobbying groups we track
AIPAC PAC: $10,000
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.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
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.These endorsements come from groups that back sending U.S. weapons and funding to the government of Israel.

In their words

Endorsements

AIPAC (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

  • His recorded votes appear as badges on this card: No on the amendment to cut $500 million for Israeli missile-defense programs, No on the 2026 amendment to cut $3.3 billion from aid to Israel; he took office in January 2025.
  • [Prior cycle, 2018] The iVoterGuide answer, verified and quoted on the card.
  • [Reported, 2024-02] The Ensure-America-Stands-with-Israel platform plank; no retrieved source, reported, not confirmed directly.
  • [Reported, 2024-06-12] The KSL primary-debate pairing of fiscal skepticism with platform support; reported, not confirmed directly.

U.S. aid to Palestinians

  • Nothing located at any date.

Characterization of the conflict

  • Nothing located outside Iran-war contexts.

Related rhetoric and lobbying

  • [Iran, 2026] The KSL interview, verified: backing the president’s action with war-powers caveats; the January 2026 op-ed, retrieved, whose research-offered quotes ("arming terrorist proxies", "peace is preserved through strength") do not appear in the retrieved text and are unused; a Meet the Press appearance on a Facebook source, not yet confirmed. All Iran material, research page only.
  • Tracked committee support appears as a badge on this card.

Safety and antisemitism

  • Nothing located in his own voice. [Attributed voices] Utah activist petitions (Utahns for a Just Peace in the Holy Land and a change.org petition) naming him among officials over U.S. support for Israel; the petitioners’ characterizations, carried as theirs.

Race and status context

  • Sitting member, nominated in the redrawn 4th. His Democratic challenger’s card carries its own record.

Also in this race

  1. – Jonny Larsen (Democrat)
  2. – Taylor Wright (Libertarian)
  3. – Steven Burt (Other)

All Utah 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.