By David Lazarus, Israel Today—
Support for Israel among US Democrats is dropping sharply, and the party once preferred by American Jews is quickly losing their support.
According to a Pew Research survey, currently, 79% of Republicans say they sympathize more with Israel than with the Palestinians, compared with just 27% of Democrats.
Since 2001, the number of Republicans siding with Israel over the Palestinians has increased 29 percentage points, from 50% to 79%. Over the same period, the share of Democrats saying they sympathize with Israel has declined 11 points, from 38% to 27%.
The partisan divide has widened considerably, especially over the past two decades. The share of Republicans who sympathize with Israel has never been higher, dating back four decades. Nearly eight-in-ten Republicans (79%) sympathize more with Israel than with the Palestinians, while just 6% sympathize more with the Palestinians.
Democrats are more divided in their views on the Middle East conflict: Currently, 27% of Democrats say they sympathize more with Israel, while 25% say they sympathize more with the Palestinians. Democrats also were divided last year, when 33% said they sympathized with Israel and 31% said the Palestinians.
Among Democrats, the sharp decline over the last few years among those who say they sympathize more with Israel can be seen all across the party, from liberals to moderates to conservatives.
The share of liberal Democrats who sympathize more with Israel than the Palestinians has declined from 33% to 19% since 2016. Currently, nearly twice as many liberal Democrats say they sympathize more with the Palestinians than with Israel. Continue Reading….
