Majority of American voters support taxpayer funding of Israel

Americans are generally supportive of government funding for Israel as the Jewish nation battles the terrorist group Hamas.

The Center Square Voters' Voice Poll, conducted with Noble Predictive Insights, shows that 31% of Americans support increasing current funding to Israel, either "slightly" or "greatly." An additional 29% agreed that there should not be an increase or decrease in funding, totaling 60% of voters supporting aid to Israel at least at current levels

The poll shows 23% of those surveyedwould like to see a decrease, and 1% said they would like the United States to "send money to Hamas instead." The remaining 16% were unsure.

"There’s a clear pro-Israel majority in this poll. Six in ten voters – no matter whether you’re looking at registered or likely voters – say we should at least maintain, if not increase, the funds sent to Israel," Mike Noble, founder and CEO of Noble Predictive Insights, said in a statement. "A little less than a quarter of voters say we should decrease funds to Israel, but did not select the option for sending money to Hamas, these voters are likely a mix of Israel-skeptical and generally isolationist voters. But they weren’t pro-Hamas."

Noble noted that 4% of those ages 18-34 would rather see the U.S. fund Hamas. The conflict between Hamas and Israel began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel. Some have said Israel's response in Gaza has not been proportional to the attacks by Gaza, with protesters on campuses and elsewhere calling to "Free Palestine" and using slogans calling for the eradication of Israel.

"Finally, only 1-2 percent of voters think the US should actively send money to Hamas. This shows how little appetite there is for a pro-Hamas foreign policy. One last interesting point. Among the respective age groups, only 18-34-year-olds showed notable support for Hamas," he added.

When broken down by party, 66% of Republicans, 51% of Democrats, and 43% of "true independents" support increasing or maintaining funding to Israel. Only 19% of Republicans support a decrease in funding, compared with 27% of Democrats. However, 2% of Democrats and 4% of Independents support giving money to Hamas.

Men were also more likely to support funding for Israel than women.

Noble Predictive Insights polled 2,573 registered voters, including an even number of Democrats and Republicans, from Jan. 2-4.