October 22, 2026
A clear difference in positions emerged within the US administration regarding the scheduled Israeli elections, as US Vice President J.D. Vance refrained from supporting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a new term, stressing his keenness not to interfere in Israeli internal affairs, following President Donald Trump’s announcement of his absolute and public support for Netanyahu.
In details of the situation, the Israeli Channel 12 website quoted Vance as saying in an interview with American journalist Mark Halperin that he refuses to express support or rejection for Netanyahu, stressing that his political focus is exclusively on American candidates and the midterm elections in the United States. Vance emphasized by saying: “I do not interfere in the elections in Israel… I am not against supporting him, and I am not in favor of supporting him.” Referring to the American president, he added: “The president has perhaps the most active support in the history of American or international politics, while I express my support for American candidates.”
On the other hand, President Donald Trump took a completely different path after deciding his position on Sunday through a post on the “Truth” platform, declaring his full support for Netanyahu, and justifying this by saying: “If Israel has an inappropriate leader, that is, anyone other than Bibi, then America will have to do the job itself, and I am not inclined to do that.”
Trump described Netanyahu as “strong,” “brave,” and “brilliant in the face of tremendous opposition, including opposition that came even from within Israel itself,” adding that he was “a great fighter and a greater partner for peace in the battle against the Islamic Republic of Iran, and this is the kind of partner the United States of America needs from Israel.”
This shift on Trump’s part comes after a long period of avoiding announcing support, as he had answered last week when asked whether he would support Netanyahu by saying: “In politics, I do not trust anyone,” before later tipping the scales in favor of full support.
Thus, this public discrepancy between the president and his vice president embodies a division in the American approach to the Israeli electoral race, as Trump chose to intervene on behalf of Netanyahu, while Vance chose to stand at the same distance from all parties, avoiding involvement in the Israeli political arena.
