Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill, one of the leading Democrats running for the vacant 11th Congressional District seat in New Jersey, told Jewish Insider he would be a strong supporter of Israel and the continued U.S.-Israel relationship, while also expressing concerns about the current Israeli government.

The race, which features a parade of Democratic candidates that also includes former Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-NJ), will determine who will fill the remainder of Gov.  Mikie Sherrill’s term in the House. An AIPAC-affiliated super PAC is spending money on ads against Malinowski, amid reports that the pro-Israel group favors former lieutenant governor Tahesha Way in the race. 

Gill — a longtime New Jersey political hand who has previously worked as a staffer for or on the campaigns of Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), former Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), and former Reps. Steve Rothman (D-NJ) and Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) — said his time working with each of those lawmakers, all strong supporters of Israel, has served as his “North Star” for his policy toward the U.S.-Israel relationship.

Gill also previously worked for former Gov. Phil Murphy, who has endorsed his congressional bid.

“I very much believe that we absolutely can respect the ability to disagree with decisions that are made by an elected government that we might not agree with, but still at the same time never waver on Israel’s right to exist, never waver on protecting the strategic partnership in that region of the world that the United States has enjoyed with the only democracy that exists, to continue to aid Israel in ways that are both important to its own protection and, by extension, the protection of our own national interests,” he said.

Gill added that he personally disagrees with and has concerns about decisions made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — mentioning the 2022 judicial reform effort in particular — but said he remains committed to protecting Israel’s right to exist and defend itself, as well as supporting democratic institutions in Israel.

Gill visited Israel in July 2024 with a local Jewish federation, visiting the Nova music festival site and meeting the family of Israeli American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin — who was killed by Hamas the following month — and with various Israeli leaders.

“That trip was incredibly impactful for me in terms of how I think about the relationship between the United States and Israel,” Gill said. 

In a position paper shared with JI, Gill said he supported the current memorandum of understanding with Israel and would back continuing it, “governed by existing laws on American aid, not additional restrictions.” He also said that he would work to build and maintain bipartisanship in support of Israel.

Gill said in his interview with JI that he wants to continue U.S. aid to Israel, though he would “be open to conversations around requirements to receive that aid. But I would start in a place … that I would not have an issue on continuation of aid to Israel and allowing Israel to defend itself.”

Pressed on the sort of “requirements” he might support, Gill said he would begin by listening directly to Israeli leaders about what the Jewish state needs to defend itself, adding that he finds the distinction some lawmakers have drawn between offensive and defensive weapons “very difficult to discern.”

Asked about the potential discrepancy between the paper and the position expressed to JI, Gill spokesperson Toral Patel told JI that Gill’s position is as expressed in the paper, and that he does not support additional restrictions. “He would be open to discussions that are fully agreed upon between the US and Israel to modify aid, but still does not believe the US should unilaterally restrict aid in any way to our ally,” Patel said, when pressed on what Gill meant by “requirements.”

“My starting point has been, and continues to be, that we should absolutely be able to support Israel in the ways that we have in the past, and at the same time, start these conversations around, what does this aid look like in the future,” Gill reiterated in his interview with JI, noting Netanyahu’s own recent comments about phasing out U.S. aid in the next decade.

In his position paper, Gill said he would “work to ensure that the United States strengthens its unwavering support for Israel’s security while helping to shape a post-Hamas Gaza that is stable, demilitarized, and incapable of threatening the Israeli people,” highlighting the need to keep putting pressure on Hamas to disarm.

“My stance in Congress will be clear and unwavering: Israel has the absolute right to defend itself, and the United States should be its partner in ensuring it has the ability to do so. Removing Hamas from power is not only essential for Israel’s security, but it is also the only path to a better future for Palestinians as well,” he said.

He blamed Hamas for “the suffering of both Israelis and Palestinians” in its attack on Israel, its theft of aid intended for Gazan civilians and its use of Gazan civilians as human shields through the use of tunnels.

Gill said that Americans “are deeply concerned by the conduct, duration, cost, and human toll of” Israel’s war in Gaza and, to maintain popular support for Israel, “we must demonstrate that our engagement is principled, strategic, and ultimately aimed at a lasting resolution that works for all peace-loving people involved.”

In the long term, Gill also expressed support for a “two-state (or more) solution,” also making reference to a “multi-state solution.” He said achieving that goal will require a viable postwar governance plan for Gaza, ongoing U.S. support for Israel’s qualitative military edge and a credible and uncorrupted multilateral reconstruction and deradicalization effort in Gaza.

The AIPAC-affiliated United Democracy Project super PAC recently launched a $500,000 ad campaign opposing Malinowski, with a spokesperson for UDP telling JI that the group views multiple other candidates in the race as more pro-Israel than Malinowski.

But local reporting indicates that UDP favors Way in the race over Gill and other pro-Israel candidates. Other candidates in the race have also expressed more openly anti-Israel views than Malinowski. 

Gill said in his interview with JI that he supported the U.S. strikes against Iran’s nuclear program last year. Going forward, he said that the U.S. must continue to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. 

He said he also wants to see U.S. lawmakers “speaking out, and louder, about the atrocities that are happening right now” against the anti-regime protesters in Iran, and to “find both in word [and] deed” ways to support the Iranian protests, while also ensuring proper congressional oversight of any potential military action.

At home in the U.S., Gill emphasized that the issue of rising antisemitism is “very, very real” and “not abstract” for him, with the Garden State having a high rate of antisemitic incidents per-capita and the 11th District having seen a series of alarming incidents, including a firebombing of a synagogue, fake blood thrown at children, the destruction of Israeli flags and an attempted plot to kill Jews.

“You need to speak out and be vocal immediately,” Gill said, arguing that, unlike some of his competitors, he has the local connections and experience to respond to such incidents — both in words and by working to help secure additional security resources — and has done so in his current role.

“This is an ongoing challenge that we have right now and a serious problem,” Gill said. “Our leaders need to acknowledge that — and not only acknowledge it, make sure that they’re advancing policies that help push back and fight against it and protect the Jewish community.”

He highlighted his ties to a variety of local Jewish leaders and elected officials, whom he said he would lean on as he considers issues relevant to the Jewish community.

He added that the federal government needs to provide sufficient funding through the Department of Education for educational programs on antisemitism, as well as funding for local law enforcement to ensure security.

Asked about the Trump administration’s policies that aimed to crack down on antisemitism on college campuses, including revoking federal funding to colleges and attempting to deport anti-Israel activists, Gill said it’s critical to address campus antisemitism but also to be “balanced about how you use the levers of power in order to execute that.”

“I support policies that go directly to dealing with the issue of antisemitism on college campuses. I do not support the way that, more broadly speaking, the Trump administration has utilized governmental policy in a[n] unethical, unconstitutional and corrupt way to force policy and outcomes in any space,” he said.

He said that there’s a difference between working to protect Jewish students and “telling an institution of higher learning or a health care institution that ‘they better do X, Y or Z, or their funding is going to be completely cut off.’ That’s extortion.”

In his position paper, Gill said that antisemitism is a problem on both sides of the political aisle that leaders must address, and accused some Republicans of ignoring “rampant hatred in their own ranks in an effort to score cheap political points” and of “purposeful conflation of disagreement with antisemitism,” which he said undermined the fight against antisemitism.

“I believe strongly in protecting the right to peaceful protest and free expression while drawing a clear line against threats, harassment and discrimination,” Gill said.

Gill told JI he supports legislation in New Jersey to codify the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism into state law, which was recently blocked by state Democratic leaders who feared political backlash, and expressed support for formally adopting the IHRA definition in his position paper.

Asked about New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s record on antisemitism, Gill told JI that he “definitely [has] some concerns regarding, not necessarily statements that he has made, but statements that have been made by people that are part of his administration.”

In general, Gill said he’s going to “wait and see in terms of how he actually executes his role as mayor.”

Outside of antisemitism policy, Gill noted that “there are many aspects of [Mamdani’s] affordability agenda that I do think are important, that resonate with large portions of our Democratic base.”

In the race generally, Gill is highlighting both his local roots — he’s the son of a Montclair public school teacher and raised his own family in the township — and his experience working for members of Congress. 

He argued that that experience gives him the “full skill set” other candidates don’t have and that he’s been “doing this work in the communities that I’m seeking to represent.”

That’s seemingly a dig at Malinowski, another likely front-runner, who previously represented a neighboring district. Gill targeted Malinowski in his first TV ads of the campaign, which began airing this week. “I think what helps you be the most effective member of Congress is understanding, having the relationships with the communities that make up your district, understanding the differences we have,” Gill said.

Gill argued that the numerous endorsements he’s received from local officials and from organized labor attest to his strengths.

He said he’s running for Congress because he sees the opportunities he had to pursue the American Dream slipping away from his own teenage children, and because he’s concerned about the “threat” he believes the Trump administration and its supporters pose to democratic norms and the Constitution.

“Because of both my Washington experience, the experience that I’ve had on the ground representing many of these communities — either as an Essex County Commissioner or doing the work with other federal officials — I think I have the right skill set to fight Donald Trump at this time, to fight MAGA Republicans, and also to deliver for the communities that I live in, that I work in, and that I’ve represented for many years,” Gill said.

Gill plans to focus on the “affordability crisis in this region,” highlighting issues like healthcare, transportation, infrastructure and the environment.

He said immigration is also a personal issue to him — his wife, a state assemblywoman, is Colombian American and his children are Latino. “These are not abstract issues right now for what’s going on in our country,” he said.

James Walkinshaw, a longtime former aide to Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA), aims to follow in his late mentor’s footsteps as the strong favorite to win a special general election in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District in September.

Walkinshaw, who has been a member of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for the last five years, spent more than a decade as Connolly’s chief of staff on Capitol Hill. He’s now running to fill the seat Connolly held from 2009 until his death earlier this year. Walkinshaw said that Connolly, who was not planning to seek reelection next year, had encouraged him to run, and he received the endorsement of Connolly’s family members.

Asked if he sees any major differences between himself and Connolly — whether on policy or his approach to the role of a member of Congress — Walkinshaw said that there are few, and that he was aligned with his former boss’ views on most issues. 

But when it comes to Israel, Walkinshaw sounds likely to adopt a more moderate tone on Middle East policy, something of a contrast from Connolly, who took an increasingly critical view of the Jewish state during his tenure in the House.

Connolly, who was a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, represented a sizable Jewish population and a significant Muslim population in his Northern Virginia district. 

“I’m a strong believer in the importance and value of a secure, democratic … Jewish state,” Walkinshaw told Jewish Insider. “I think the U.S.-Israel relationship has immense historical importance. It has immense strategic importance to the United States, and I want to see a strong U.S.-Israel relationship with bipartisan support.”

He said that the current situation in Gaza presents “a very difficult moment in the region and in the relationship, but my hope is we can get through this moment and preserve the really important relationship that we have.”

Walkinshaw said he’s hopeful that talks will resume to return all of the remaining hostages, end the violence in Gaza and increase humanitarian aid to alleviate the current crisis, which he described as “unacceptable.”

Walkinshaw said he opposes the push by some progressive House members for a full halt to U.S. military aid to Israel, arguing that “severing the U.S.-Israel relationship in that way” would not serve anyone’s interests, including the Palestinians. “I think it is really important that relationship continue.”

“I wish that President Trump had continued to pursue that diplomatic path. I think that path was still available to him when the decision was made to launch the strikes against Iran. And I’m hopeful that that diplomatic path can be resumed,” Walkinshaw told JI.

“But I do think that the president of the United States, whether it’s Joe Biden or Donald Trump, has a responsibility to be a neutral broker and try to encourage both sides to come to an agreement to reach a ceasefire and the president of United States has a lot of leverage in those conversations, and should use it,” he continued.

Walkinshaw said that a nuclear-armed Iran is “unacceptable” and would endanger both Israeli and U.S. interests globally, but said that a deal with the Iranian regime is the only path to guaranteeing that Iran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon.

“I wish that President Trump had continued to pursue that diplomatic path. I think that path was still available to him when the decision was made to launch the strikes against Iran. And I’m hopeful that that diplomatic path can be resumed,” Walkinshaw told JI, when asked about the administration’s June military strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

He argued that although the U.S. and Israeli strikes had “diminished” the regime’s capabilities, Iran still has the capacity to rebuild and resume its nuclear weapons program, potentially in a more covert fashion than in the past.

And he said he believes that the Constitution and the War Powers Act “are clear” that Trump should have come to Congress for authorization before launching the strikes.

Walkinshaw’s district has seen a series of antisemitic incidents in recent months, including the arrest of a George Mason University student for plotting a terror attack against the Israeli consulate in New York and the discovery of pro-terrorism materials in the homes of two other students.

“The first thing we all have to do as leaders is speak out clearly that any form of hate or discrimination, including antisemitism, are absolutely unacceptable,” Walkinshaw said. He said that he would work in Congress to speak out against antisemitism “wherever it might take root” and to “ensure that in our schools, we’re educating students about antisemitism and ways to speak out against it and be involved in the very important efforts to end antisemitism.”

He noted that George Mason falls under the supervision of the state, and that Fairfax County has no authority over the campus or campus property, but said he’s “proud of the work that the Fairfax County Police Department did in coordination with other law enforcement agencies” to respond to the three students in question.

He also noted that there was a spree of instances of antisemitic graffiti in the district he represents on the Fairfax County board, all perpetrated by one individual. He said that, after those incidents, he brought together a local group of interfaith leaders to speak out and show solidarity with the Jewish community.

“The first thing we all have to do as leaders is speak out clearly that any form of hate or discrimination, including antisemitism, are absolutely unacceptable,” Walkinshaw said. He said that he would work in Congress to speak out against antisemitism “wherever it might take root” and to “ensure that in our schools, we’re educating students about antisemitism and ways to speak out against it and be involved in the very important efforts to end antisemitism.”

Walkinshaw added that he’s “proud of the strong relationship I’ve built with the Jewish community here in Fairfax” and that he would plan, as a member of Congress, to continue to stand with the community, in both times of celebration and mourning.

Eileen Filler-Corn, the former Virginia House speaker and outspoken supporter of Israel, endorsed Walkinshaw. She agreed that the nominee has longstanding connections with the Jewish community.

“He’s been very, very active with our community and very supportive of our community and engaged,” Filler-Corn told JI, as he consistently attends community events and vigils. “He’s not a new face to the Jewish community. He’s somebody we know very well. And he doesn’t just say the right things. He actually walks the walk.”

She added that he has reached out and shown up consistently, even when “things change and things become hard.”

“He is somebody that does his research and listens and learns, and I do believe he has been extremely supportive of our community amid the rise in antisemitism,” she continued, adding that he has a record of action and public comments as supervisor to back that up.

Filler-Corn said she’s had the opportunity to speak with Walkinshaw many times both before and after Oct. 7, 2023, about Israel policy, and emphasized that he’s always available to listen and talk about issues with her. She said she believes he understands the issues at play, and that he’s also willing to research and learn about them.

“I have been very, very pleased with what he has shared,” she continued, noting that he had highlighted the need to free the hostages during a candidate forum in the Democratic primary.

Walkinshaw told JI he ultimately decided to run for Congress because he feels that his community is “under attack from the Trump administration” and that the administration is threatening American democracy. 

“I think by and large, if voters in the 11th District liked what they got from Gerry Connolly in terms of his philosophy and in terms of his approach to fighting for the people he represented, then they’re going to like what they get from me if I’m successful on Sept. 9,” Walkinshaw told JI.

Given his experience, he argued, he’s well-placed to advocate for the community, and has a deep understanding of the centrality of constituent services issues to the role and of how to deliver results in the House.

He said he’s aiming to follow in Connolly’s footsteps and gain a seat on the House Oversight Committee, of which Connolly was briefly the ranking member prior to his death, highlighting the high proportion of government contractors and federal employees in his district impacted by the Trump administration’s mass cuts to the federal government. Walkinshaw also named affordability as a top priority, which he said should be a focus for every Democratic candidate.

“I think by and large, if voters in the 11th District liked what they got from Gerry Connolly in terms of his philosophy and in terms of his approach to fighting for the people he represented, then they’re going to like what they get from me if I’m successful on Sept. 9,” Walkinshaw told JI.