Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) has become one of the harshest critics of Israel in the House, in recent months associating with some of the leading anti-Israel figures within the Democratic Party — at one point proudly declaring his ties to a far-left antisemitic podcaster.

In his pushback to the U.S. war against Iran, he has caricatured those supportive of taking military action against the Islamic Republic as part the “Epstein class” — which critics have accused of being an antisemitic trope — while defending right-wing commentator Pat Buchanan from past charges of antisemitism. 

As a result, he is facing a primary challenge from tech entrepreneur Ethan Agarwal, who is accusing the congressman of embracing far-left views to seek national attention for a potential presidential campaign — at the expense of focusing on constituents back home in the Silicon Valley-based district.

“The district is being represented by a guy who could not care less about the people in the district, and that’s frustrating because I supported Ro when he first ran back in 2012,” Agarwal told Jewish Insider on Friday. “He’s completely [turned around] on basically everything that he said to his supporters.”

Agarwal said he sees Khanna’s activities, including his opposition to the Iran war and outspokenness against Israel, as plays for national attention, rather than representing the district that elected him.

Khanna “just totally does not give a s*** about the district. He’s running for president, and he wants to run to the left on every issue,” Agarwal alleged. “The district needs a representative that’s focused on the district itself, and that’s why I’m running for Congress.”

Those allegations of political opportunism were echoed in a recent Washington Post column by writer James Kirchick, who reported that Khanna professed to being a strong ally of Israel and the Jewish community earlier in his career when he was seeking a role in the Obama administration. The op-ed framed Khanna as a relentless self-promoter willing to change his views for attention and career advancement.

Khanna, in response to the allegations that he’s lost focus on his district back home, told JI he was “proud of my record representing California’s 17th district,” pointing to his work to secure $13.5 million in funding this year for projects including affordable housing, veteran housing, safe routes for children to get to school, clean water and transportation. He added that he has held nearly 80 town halls, is regularly meeting with local community leaders and is in touch with anti-ICE activists, and touted his constituent services and endorsements from local leaders and groups. 

“And I’m willing to take on powerful people when accountability is needed. When I called for the release of the Epstein files, many dismissed it and said no one in the district would care. They were wrong. Constituents raise it with me regularly because they want transparency and justice for survivors,” Khanna added.

Agarwal’s criticisms go beyond hitting Khanna for putting national issues ahead of local ones. He accused the congressman of engaging in shoot-from-the-hip social media commentary that has inflamed antisemitism at a time of heightened fears within the Jewish community. 

“Even if you weren’t running for Congress or trying to run for president — what is wrong with you?” Agarwal said. “If the congressperson of the district is advocating these kinds of things publicly, it stokes and it inflames the culture on the ground.”

“He thinks being racist against Jewish people is going to help him win the American left,” Agarwal added. “I don’t care if he’s right. I just think it’s unethical and immoral.”

Khanna responded that he has “consistently condemned antisemitism in all forms,” including speaking out specifically against various recent incidents, that he has been “been clear in my support for Israel as a Jewish and democratic state,” that he has worked with Jewish leaders and visited synagogues within the district. 

“This issue is personal for me. My nieces and nephews are Jewish through my brother’s marriage, which has deepened my understanding of why it is so important to speak out against antisemitism in any form,” Khanna continued.

Defending his affiliation with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner and far-left influencer Hasan Piker, Khanna said, “I do believe like Franklin Roosevelt and President Obama that we need to build a big tent, and Mayor Mamdani and Graham Platner are part of that. I also engage with media across the political spectrum, from Hasan Piker to Shawn Ryan to Theo Von to Sean Hannity, because we shouldn’t shy away from debates or discussions with people with different ideologies. We must engage.”

Agarwal has publicly linked Khanna’s rhetoric to an assault on two people speaking Hebrew in a San Jose restaurant earlier this week. The attack took place within Khanna’s district.

“It doesn’t take a genius to draw a line between those two things,” Agarwal said.

“We MUST capture and punish the perpetrators. Beyond that, we HAVE to turn down the dial of anti-Israeli rhetoric. [Khanna] acknowledge your role in this, and apologize for inflaming tensions,” he urged the congressman on X last week. “Take responsibility for creating the environment that enables these lunatics.”

In response, Khanna called the assault “horrific” and said it has “no place in our community,” adding that he had “unequivocally condemned” the attack and pushed for the attackers to be prosecuted.

“I’ve taken concrete steps to confront antisemitism locally. I’ve held multiple town halls and meetings with members of the Jewish community across the district to hear directly about their concerns and make sure they feel safe,” Khanna said.

He also highlighted his move two years ago to appoint a staffer in his office to serve as a point of contact for community members on antisemitism and a recent town hall he held with a local Jewish Democratic group. 

“My focus has been making sure that when antisemitism occurs, our community knows it will be taken seriously and addressed immediately,” Khanna continued.

While he didn’t weigh in on the broader strategic goals of the U.S. operation in Iran, Agarwal has argued that it’s an unequivocal good for the Iranian people and the world that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of the joint U.S.-Israel operation, is dead, and criticized Khanna for trying to prevent or stop the U.S. operation against Iran.

“I am in support of the murder of Ali Khamenei because he was a brutal dictator and 20,000 Iranian Americans in [this] district — I spoke to many of them — agree with that,” Agarwal said. “I don’t know what happens from here. I think there’s open questions. I think there’s a good path, and there’s mistakes that can be made, but what I do know is that Iran is better off without him, and I think America is better off without him being alive.”

Khanna stood behind his advocacy for the war powers resolution, emphasizing the support it received among House Democrats, including Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and two moderate Jewish Democrats who initially opposed it. He said that the issue is a matter of constitutional authority. 

“I have been clear that the Iranian regime is brutal and destabilizing, as we have seen in its repression of its own people and the killing of thousands of protestors. But launching a war of choice in the Middle East without fully understanding the risks to our servicemembers or the potential for wider escalation has been reckless,” Khanna said. “People in my district understand the cost of these endless wars and oppose them. They expect their representative to stand up for the Constitution and to ensure that decisions are made carefully and with accountability.”

Agarwal has also blasted Khanna for his comments linking the Iran war to the Epstein case.

“What does [Jeffrey] Epstein have to do with the war in Iran? … aside from these being two topics he thinks are going to help him get elected president,” Agarwal said, adding that he believes that Khanna is using “Epstein class” as a broad pejorative to smear his political enemies, Israelis and the Jewish people.

Khanna told JI, “The ‘Epstein class’ refers to a group of wealthy and powerful elites who use their wealth and connections to operate as if they are above the law and not subject to the same accountability as everyone else. The phrase reflects the reality that Jeffrey Epstein and the people around him were able to operate for years without consequences,” and said “many prominent Jewish Americans” including Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and columnist Bill Kristol “have used the phrase after I coined it.”

“Attempts to twist the meaning of that phrase into something else is an empty political attack to distract from the real issue, which is accountability for powerful people who believe the rules do not apply to them, including rules of war,” Khanna said.

Agarwal also didn’t expound at length on Israel policy — emphasizing that his first responsibility in Congress would be on local issues in his district. He did say, however, that he believes that Israel is “our strongest ally in the Middle East” and that a stronger relationship between the two countries is good for the U.S., the U.S. economy and the district.

With a nearly decade-long record in Congress, a prominent profile and $15.5 million in donations on hand as of the end of the year, Khanna is strongly favored to win re-election. In the previous election, Khanna picked up 63% of the vote in the all-party primary, rising to 68% in the general election against a Republican challenger.

But with some prominent figures in Silicon Valley’s tech scene getting behind Agarwal, he might have a chance at making Khanna work harder for his re-election.

Agarwal argues that Khanna is also taking the election for granted, and that his alleged lack of attention to local issues will backfire on him, as well as his support for a wealth tax and his breaks with the local Israeli, Jewish, Iranian and other immigrant communities.

“I’m going to win this election by listening to the people in the district and being their advocate, as opposed to focusing on my national profile,” he said, pointing to Khanna’s national travel to 2028 presidential primary states.