US Vice President JD Vance declined to endorse Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of Israel’s October 27 election, despite US President Donald Trump’s explicit endorsement of the Israeli leader on Sunday.
In an interview with journalist Mark Halperin, Vance was asked directly whether he supported Netanyahu’s reelection, following Trump’s announcement over the weekend.
“Over the weekend, the president endorsed Benjamin Netanyahu for reelection in Israel. Do you endorse Benjamin Netanyahu?” Halperin asked.
“The president has the most effective endorsement in American or international political history,” Vance replied.
“I endorse American candidates, and that’s where I’m focused on as the midterms. So I’m not getting involved in Israeli elections.”
Halperin pressed the vice president, asking whether he was deliberately avoiding expressing support for or opposition to Netanyahu.
Vance clarified that he was neither endorsing Netanyahu nor taking a position against his reelection.
“I’m not getting involved in Israeli elections,” he reiterated.
The exchange came just one day after Trump publicly endorsed Netanyahu in a lengthy statement posted on Truth Social, nine days before Israelis head to the polls.
Netanyahu a 'great warrior prime minister,' Trump says
In his statement, Trump described Netanyahu as “a Great Warrior Prime Minister, and an even greater Partner for Peace in combating the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
The president also warned against electing a different Israeli leader, explicitly linking Netanyahu’s reelection to Washington’s efforts to confront Iran.
“If Israel has the wrong Leader, which would be anyone other than Bibi, America will have to do this work ourselves, and I am not inclined to do so,” Trump wrote.
He concluded with an unequivocal endorsement:
“Please let this Letter serve to represent my Complete and Total Endorsement of Bibi Netanyahu in his upcoming Race for Re-Election as Prime Minister of Israel. BIBI NETANYAHU WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!”
While Trump has chosen to openly support Netanyahu’s reelection bid, Vance made clear that he does not intend to personally endorse any candidate in Israel’s upcoming election.
However, the vice president did not criticize Trump’s decision to endorse Netanyahu or express opposition to the Israeli prime minister.
Instead, he praised the political influence of Trump’s endorsements while emphasizing that his own focus remains on American candidates ahead of the US midterm elections.
It is worth noting, however, that Vance is not among Netanyahu’s supporters within Trump’s inner circle, and their last meeting in Washington, in July, just three months ago, was particularly tense.