Ilhan Omar
Ilhan OmarReuters

Sympathy among Americans for Israel in the “Israeli-Palestinian conflict” is at its lowest in a decade, according to a Gallup poll released Wednesday.

The results, based on Gallup's annual World Affairs survey conducted every February, indicated that 59% of Americans sympathize with Israel over the Palestinian Authority (PA), down from 64% in 2018 and the lowest percentage favoring Israel since 2009. On the other hand, 21% sympathize with the PA, the same as a year ago and the highest since 2001 by one point.

According to the poll, Republican sympathy for Israel over the PA fell from an all-time high of 87% last year to 76% today, while Democratic sympathy fell less sharply from 49% last year to 43% today. However, the poll showed Democratic sympathy to be at its lowest since 2005.

The poll also found that “conservative Republicans” have the highest net sympathy for Israel (percentage of support for Israel minus percentage of support for the PA), followed by “moderate/liberal Republicans” and then “moderate/conservative Democrats,” with “liberal Democrats” showing the lowest net sympathy.

Most of the decline in net sympathy for Israel has taken place among liberal Democrats, from +17 in 2013-2016 to +3 in 2017-2019. Nearly as many liberal Democrats now sympathize with the PA, 38%, as do with Israel, 41%.

The gap between the net sympathy for Israel among Republicans and Democrats has been widening, with net sympathy for Israel increasing among both Republican groups and decreasing among both Democratic groups.

Gallup noted that the latest poll was taken before Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar’s recent comments suggesting that support for Israel amounted to “allegiance to a foreign country.”