AIPAC halts endorsements and direct contributions to candidates, NPR reports

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, announced Wednesday that it will no longer issue endorsements, make direct PAC contributions or earmark funds for candidates, NPR reported Oct. 21. NPR said AIPAC announced the changes in a letter to members stating that "the challenges we are confronting will continue to grow in the years ahead."

The letter said the group would not stop funneling money to candidates who align with its mission, and would instead prioritize increasing direct, organized contributions from individual Americans and "maximizing the emerging political fundraising tools," NPR reported. It also said the 2028 cycle will "demand an even stronger commitment by our activists to pro-Israel politics."

AIPAC contributed nearly $25 million to candidates and political committees in 2026 through Sept. 30, according to FEC filings cited by NPR. Its affiliated super PAC, United Democracy Project, contributed $13 million and spent an additional $53.5 million in independent expenditures, NPR reported. NPR said it is unclear what the super PAC's role will be going forward.

NPR reported that several of the super PAC's independent expenditures are being used in recent days to campaign against Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Michigan, and that AIPAC also spent heavily against him in the primary, backing Rep. Haley Stevens. An AIPAC spokesperson did not immediately return NPR's request for comment, NPR said.