US citizens’ support for Israel at historic low over Gaza genocide: Poll

Al Jazeera · Feb 27, 2026 · Collected from RSS

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Backing for Israel among US voters hits historic nadir, with 41% now sympathising more with Palestinians, Gallup poll reveals.Published On 27 Feb 2026Support for Israel among United States citizens has dramatically decreased, according to a new Gallup poll, marking an unprecedented shift in decades of overwhelming, unconditional backing for Israel, regardless of which party was in the White House or had control of Congress.In a report published on Friday, the polling agency said 41 percent of Americans now say they sympathise more with Palestinians, while 36 percent remain more favourable to the Israelis. By contrast, before the Hamas-led attack in southern Israel in October 2023 and the ensuing genocidal war waged by Israel in Gaza, 54 percent of Americans sympathised more with Israel and 31 percent with Palestine.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Global impunity fuels Israel’s illegal push to annex West Bank: Amnestylist 2 of 3What is Greater Israel, and how popular is it among Israelis?list 3 of 3Gaza mother recognises missing son on Israeli ‘for sale’ postend of listHere’s a breakdown of the report’s main findings: Democrats’ sympathies haven’t changed significantly over the past year, having already flipped strongly towards the Palestinians in 2025 after first tilting that way in 2023. Currently, 65 percent of Democrats say their sympathies lie more with the Palestinians, while 17 percent say they sympathise more with the Israelis. Driving the shift this year, the report says, is the substantial movement among independents who have now joined Democrats in supporting Palestinians. By 41 percent to 30 percent, independents say they sympathise more with the Palestinians than the Israelis, whereas in all prior years, they were more sympathetic towards the Israelis, including by 42 percent to 34 percent last year. Seven in 10 Republicans say they sympathise more with the Israelis, while 13 percent go with the Palestinians. Still, the Republican support for Israel has declined by a 10-point record since 2024, to its lowest level since 2004. Support for Israel has become deeply contentious in the conservative party, including driving a wedge within the far-right conservative MAGA movement. Some of its representatives, such as former Fox news host-turned popular podcaster Tucker Carlson, have become critical of what they say is Israel’s excessive influence over US politics. Age gap: For the first time in Gallup’s surveys since 2001, a majority of US citizens aged between 18 and 34 are more sympathetic to the Palestinian people. Meanwhile, 23 percent of young adults say they sympathise more with the Israelis, a record low for the age group. Sympathy for Israel has dropped from 45 percent last year to 28 percent. Among adults older than 55, 49 percent sympathise more with the Israelis and 31% with the Palestinians, the first time since 2005 that less than half of older Americans have said they sympathise more with the Israelis. Gallup also measured US sentiment over the establishment of a Palestinian state. There are no significant changes compared to recent years, as 6 in 10 adults favour the establishment of an independent Palestinian state in the occupied West Bank and Gaza – an almost consistent figure since 2020. Perceptions’ shifts followed what has been widely regarded as Israel’s disproportionate response to the October 7 attack, where about 1,200 people were killed in Israel and more than 250 were taken captive.Israel has killed more than 72,000 people in Gaza, the majority of them women and children, and reduced almost the entire enclave into rubble.The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity and war crimes; and prompted South Africa to file a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which has been joined by several other nations.Still, while support fell at a faster rate following the war, the trend had started going downwards since 2019 due to the “cumulative effect of gradual changes in US attitudes since then”, read the report.