Illinois’ Jewish Gov. J.B. Pritzker, once an AIPAC donor, slams pro-Israel lobby
Pritzker, a billionaire and potential Democratic presidential hopeful, says lobby, which spent heavily on state’s primary races, has turned pro-Trump
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CHICAGO (AP) — Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Wednesday condemned special interest money that poured into the state ahead of this week’s primary, including from AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby that the billionaire and potential 2028 presidential contender once supported.
Pritzker, a Jewish Democrat who also spent money to influence Democratic primary elections in the state on Tuesday, was a donor to the lobby, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, before he walked away more than a decade ago.
He told The Associated Press on Wednesday that AIPAC, which lobbies for US support for Israel and is a top donor to political campaigns, had become an ally of Republican US President Donald Trump and lost its way as a bipartisan group.
“It became an organization that was supporting Donald Trump and people who follow Donald Trump,” Pritzker said. “AIPAC really is not an organization that I think today I would want any part of.”
Pritzker is the latest leading Democratic figure to criticize AIPAC, which once had allies across the party and has given contributions to many Democrats, including Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the US House minority leader. Last month, California Governor Gavin Newsom, also widely seen as a 2028 presidential contender, declared that he never has and “never will” accept AIPAC funding.
Outside groups, including AIPAC, funneled roughly $70 million into six open US House and Senate races in Illinois on Tuesday. Pritzker called it “interference.” A message left Wednesday for an AIPAC spokesperson wasn’t immediately returned.
Outside groups influence campaign issues
The open contests in Illinois — largely due to retirements — were a proving ground for some of the biggest issues before Democrats in 2026, from support for Israel to the cryptocurrency and AI industries, as super PACs poured millions into the races.
Questions about US support for Israel in Gaza war, and in recent days the Iran war, permeated several contests.
AIPAC’s involvement sparked some of the primary’s harshest attacks, but the group’s success was mixed.
In a 10-candidate primary for a US House district that includes parts of Chicago’s South Side, AIPAC backed Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller, who won the Democratic nod Tuesday. The group’s preferred Democratic candidate in a heavily Jewish district north of Chicago, however, lost to Evanston’s self-described “progressive Zionist” mayor, Daniel Biss, a Jewish critic of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
While unopposed in his own primary, Pritzker was a strong presence in several campaigns, contributing millions to support his lieutenant governor, Juliana Stratton, in her successful bid for the Democratic US Senate nomination.
The move, and Pritzker’s possible 2028 presidential bid, put a fresh spotlight on his global policy views amid growing unrest over the Democratic Party’s relationship to Israel.
A supporter of Israel, Pritzker has also rejected Netanyahu’s leadership. He has called for two-state solution with “safe havens” needed both for Jews in Israel and Palestinians in Gaza.
“I do not know why the United States has walked away from that, except, of course, that Donald Trump doesn’t seem to understand how to create Middle East peace and instead wants to go to war, as he has now done in Iran, simply following Netanyahu into that war,” Pritzker said.
Pritzker is one of a string of critics of the war, from both parties, to suggest that Netanyahu pulled the US into the war, a notion Trump has rejected.
“Are we going to now take military adventures across the world to take out leaders, who we think are bad for their countries?” he said. “If so, we’re going to be involved in a whole lot of wars going forward.”
Millions poured into races from Pritzker, outside groups
Pritzker is an heir to the Hyatt Hotel fortune and hails from one of the wealthiest families in the US.
The family has donated large sums of money to education, the arts and Jewish life in Chicago and beyond, including the Pritzker Family National Photography Collection at Israel’s National Library, the Hand in Hand chain of bilingual Jewish-Arab schools in Israel, and the Pritzker Edition of the Zohar, the first fully annotated English translation of the pivotal Jewish mystical text.
The governor himself has also spent heavily on political races. Pritzker put at least $5 million into helping Stratton get elected. She won the Democratic Senate nomination over US Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, who dominated in fundraising.
Outside groups also spent more than $16 million to support Stratton’s campaign, while others spent $11 million in opposition.
In November, Pritzker faces Republican Darren Bailey, a former state lawmaker who backs Trump’s agenda. It will be a rematch after Pritzker handily defeated Bailey in 2022.
When asked about his own ambitions for higher office, Pritzker said he is not planning anything beyond his 2026 bid for a third term.
“That is not something I’m thinking,” he said.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
The Times of Israel Community.