Democratic lawmakers are going on record in increasing numbers to show opposition to Israel’s government. Progressives say it took way too long.

The Senate voted Wednesday evening to reject two resolutions that would have blocked arms sales to Israel, but the size of the Democratic opposition marked an unmistakable turning point in the party’s decades-long relationship with the Jewish state.

“What is beginning to happen is Congress is catching up with the American people,” Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats and a longtime champion of the effort, told NOTUS. “I think you’re seeing more and more Democrats seeing the light on this issue, understanding that what we’re trying to do is right, and it’s good politics as well.”

The two resolutions, which targeted arms sales to Israel, were opposed by all Republicans, the first 40-59 and the second 36-63. The support from a majority of Senate Democrats revealed a major shift in the party’s relationship with Israel and the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a leader who’s long had strong support from Democratic leaders despite outrage from progressives over the war in Gaza.

The number of Democrats voting with Sanders, who sponsored the resolutions has more than doubled in less than two years amid Israeli wars with Hamas, Iran and Lebanon. By contrast, in April 2025, only 15 senators voted to block arms sales. By July of that year, the number had grown to 27 on a vote involving small arms to the Israeli police.

But Wednesday’s vote, with potential 2028 hopefuls including Sens. Ruben Gallego, Mark Kelly, Elissa Slotkin, Chris Murphy and Cory Booker voting for the measure alongside more moderate Democrats, shattered that record.

The political stakes are high for lawmakers trying to make an impression before the midterms. With the elections approaching and a 2028 primary field taking shape, the vote represents where Democrats are specifically on Israel’s government, led by Netanyahu.

“Netanyahu has made some decisions inconsistent with our values,” Kelly, a veteran and national-security-minded Democrat, said in an interview with NOTUS. “As a good ally of theirs, I think we’ve got to make decisions that are also in their best interest.”

“It’s unfortunate,” he added. “We want Israel to be strong and prosperous. I’m always going to support Israel.”

Only seven Democrats voted against both resolutions: Sens. Chuck Schumer, Chris Coons, Catherine Cortez Masto, Kirsten Gillibrand, Richard Blumenthal, John Fetterman and Jacky Rosen.

Schumer, a staunch supporter of Israel and the first Jewish Senate leader in U.S. history, has been critical of Netanyahu, calling him an “obstacle to peace” in the Middle East. In an interview this week, the New York Democrat noted that many of his family members were killed during the Holocaust and argued it was important for the U.S. to stand with Israel.

“We can love Israel, even when you disagree strongly with Netanyahu,” Schumer told NOTUS. “And that’s the message I am doing everything I can to convey to the country.”

The Biden and Trump administrations have provided Israel with more than $21 billion in military aid since October 2023, according to a 2025 report. The two arms sales Democrats sought to block on Wednesday amounted to approximately $446 million, per Sanders’ office.

Rep. Delia Ramirez of Illinois, a progressive who’s a vocal critic of U.S. policy on Israel’s military actions in Gaza, praised the Senate Democrats for getting behind Sanders’ resolution.

“Would you have imagined a year ago that this number of senators would be voting for an arms embargo to Israel?” Ramirez said. “I think that politically, people are feeling it.”

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez praised the senators who supported the measure on Wednesday, saying she was “deeply encouraged” by the support.

“I think them seeing that this is changing is an affirmation to the power of all of those communities that felt powerless to stop this not so long ago,” she added. “I think it’s very encouraging.”

Sen. Elissa Slotkin, who calls herself a staunch supporter of Israel and has received questions about her Jewish donors on the campaign trail, explained her decision to support the measure.

“I voted to block the provision of U.S. military assistance to Israel: 1,000-pound so-called ‘dumb’ bombs and military bulldozers,” she said in a statement about her vote. “My entire life, I have been — and continue to be — a strong supporter of a Jewish and democratic State of Israel.”

She added: “But being pro-Israel today is not about simply supporting the political or military agenda of Prime Minister Netanyahu, just like being pro-American should not be equated with loyalty to President Trump.”

J Street, a liberal Jewish American advocacy organization, found that 70% of American Jews oppose unconditional military and financial assistance to Israel, 60% oppose “the US military action against Iran” and 77% do not believe “President Trump has a clear plan and mission for the war in Iran.” The group also called for the U.S. government to end its special treatment of Israel with unconditional military aid.

“It’s encouraging to see a growing number of senators recognize that unconditional US military support for Israel is no longer tenable in light of the Netanyahu government’s policies,” J Street’s president, Jeremy Ben-Ami, said in a statement. “The work now is to translate that shift into action: alleviating the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, stopping violence on the West Bank and pursuing paths to end the ongoing fighting across the region.”