Democratic Party’s internal review links Biden’s Gaza policy to Harris election loss
Biden administration's support for Israel was a "net-negative" that cost the party young and progressive voters, findings show
WASHINGTON, United States (MNTV) – The Democratic Party’s internal review of the 2024 presidential election has concluded that the Biden administration’s approach to the genocide in Gaza cost Kamala Harris significant voter support, according to Axios.
Democratic National Committee (DNC) officials preparing the report found that the administration’s backing of Israel was a “net-negative” in the election, eroding support particularly among young and progressive voters.
DNC aides working on the post-election analysis held a closed-door meeting with the pro-Palestinian IMEU Policy Project, during which activists argued that the Biden-Harris administration’s support for Israel contributed to the party’s losses.
“The DNC shared with us that their own data also found that policy was, in their words, a ‘net-negative’ in the 2024 election,” said Hamid Bendaas, a spokesperson for the IMEU Policy Project. Two other senior aides at the organization confirmed the DNC had reached that conclusion, and Axios independently verified that Democratic officials conducting the autopsy believed the issue had hurt the party’s standing with certain voters.
The IMEU Policy Project has since accused the DNC of withholding the report in part because of its findings on Israel — a claim DNC spokesperson Kendall Witmer denied. DNC officials announced last year they would not release the audit, saying they did not want the report to distract from the work of winning future elections.
Bendaas called on the DNC to share its findings broadly ahead of what he described as “critical” midterm elections.
Progressive and moderate Democrats remain sharply divided on the issue, with the left more critical of Israeli military conduct in Gaza and increasingly skeptical of unconditional U.S. support.
Asked for comment, a Harris aide pointed to the former vice president’s recent remarks during a tour stop for her memoir, “107 Days.”
“We should have done more as an administration,” Harris said. “We should have spoken publicly about our criticism” of how Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu executed the war.
In the book, Harris also wrote that Biden’s perceived willingness to give Netanyahu a “blank check” had damaged his approval ratings and, by extension, her own campaign.
She revealed that she privately “pleaded” with Biden to show more empathy for civilians in Gaza, writing that while he could passionately declare “I am a Zionist,” his public statements about innocent Palestinians were “perceived as insufficient and forced.”
Despite these private reservations, Harris declined to break publicly with Biden on Israel during the campaign.
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