Rick Larsen

Democrat · U.S. House, Washington District 2

In April 2024 Larsen said he voted for funding to the government of Israel and humanitarian aid for Gaza. In July 2026 he voted against an amendment ending U.S. funding related to Israel, saying it would also have stopped humanitarian aid, and said he opposes extremism in Netanyahu's government.

Rick Larsen is a Democrat who has represented Washington's 2nd District, which runs north from Everett to the Canadian border and out across the San Juan Islands, since 2001. He is the top Democrat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. He faces Republican Edwin Feller on November 3, 2026.

His fullest statements on what the United States sends come in pairs, and each one points two ways. In April 2024 he said he had voted for emergency funding to Israel and humanitarian aid for Gaza, and that he continued to stand with the Israeli people and support Israel's right to defend itself. In the same statement he said he shared his constituents' frustration that the Israeli response to the October 7 attacks had enveloped all of Gaza in suffering instead of being narrowly focused on defeating Hamas, and he singled out the money in that bill for humanitarian aid to Palestinians and for Israel's missile defense systems.

In July 2026 he said he voted no on the amendment that would have prohibited any diplomatic, humanitarian, development or security funding related to Israel, giving as his reason that it would have stopped American efforts to distribute humanitarian aid, resettle refugees, support security work with Palestinians and promote peace, and adding that he supports Israel's right to exist and to defend itself. The same statement is the plainest thing he has said about the Israeli government: he said he continues to oppose extremism in Prime Minister Netanyahu's government, any effort by Israel to take over Gaza, and the continued expansion of illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank, and that he supports humanitarian aid to Palestinians, a ceasefire, reconstruction in Gaza and a two-state solution.

Between those two statements his own newsroom carries nothing on U.S. weapons or military funding for the government of Israel, though the votes shown on this card continued through that period. What it does carry is aid oversight and constituent work. In August 2025 he said he had joined Rep. Sean Casten and more than 90 House Democrats in demanding oversight of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the body that ran aid distribution sites in Gaza, calling it an unqualified organization whose efforts had led to mass panic and Palestinian casualties, and he said providing secure humanitarian assistance to Palestinians is a moral obligation. In October 2025 he said he was pressing the State Department for consular services and immediate release for an Orcas Island constituent detained by Israel after taking part in the Global Sumud Flotilla.

In June 2024, after protests over Gaza disrupted his campaign events, he told the Lynnwood Times that he supported the president's ceasefire plan, continued to call for Hamas to release the hostages, continued to deplore the deaths of innocent Palestinians, and continued to support Israel's right to exist and be secure in the region. His record on this question runs back a long way: in August 2014 he voted for and announced $225 million for Iron Dome, saying Israel has a fundamental right to self-defense and that the recent violence complicated the task of establishing a two-state solution. In May 2024 he voted for the Antisemitism Awareness Act, as the House Clerk's own roll call records. What he has said about Iran, an advocacy group's file on him, and everything else that was read are on the research page.

Tracked votes: opposed sending U.S. weapons or funding to the government of Israel in 3 of 6 recorded votes.

Research

Our research began on 2026-08-21 with a search for sources, and its results were treated as leads rather than as evidence. Every page cited below was opened and read on 2026-09-07 unless the entry says otherwise. His own press-release index for 2024, 2025 and 2026 was read page by page. Bands: Position (2024-01-26 onward), Reaction window (2023-10-07 to 2024-01-25), Earlier record (before 2023-10-07). Larsen has represented WA-02 since 2001, so his tracked votes appear as badges on this card and are not re-counted 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)

The race

Not on the card, and why

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

Also in this race: Edwin H. Feller (Republican) · All Washington 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.