New York City Council candidate Lindsey Boylan, who was backed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani in this week’s special election, was resoundingly defeated on Tuesday night by community activist Carl Wilson — a result that also marks a step forward in the evolving fight over a buffer zone bill vetoed by Mamdani last week.

With 99% of the vote in, Boylan received just over 25% in the contest for the Manhattan district, while Wilson, the preferred candidate of Council Speaker Julie Menin, had clinched a plurality of 43%. 

During a meeting on the 2027 funding bill for the Department of State, several Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee pushed, ultimately unsuccessfully, for the committee to adopt new conditions on the $3.3 billion in U.S. military aid allocated for Israel annually in the bill.

Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL) introduced an amendment which would have prevented the use of U.S. funded-weapons to expand settlements or damage or destroy “homes, schools, farms, orchards or other civilian property” in the West Bank or Gaza, but ultimately withdrew it. Israel has routinely targeted Hamas operatives hiding in a range of civilian locations throughout Gaza.

Lawmakers said that the United Arab Emirates’ decision to withdraw from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries could yield positive economic benefits for the U.S. and is a sign that the regional alignment of the Gulf countries is shifting.

Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) told Jewish Insider that the recent move shows “the continued fragmentation of the Gulf Cooperation Council and of the relations between our Gulf partners as Saudi and the Emirates are pursuing different security paths.”

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, confronting a municipal budget crisis and local job and population loss, continues to dabble in Middle Eastern geopolitics — with plans to attend the gala of a leading anti-Israel advocacy group on Tuesday evening.

Hours after gathering with City Council Speaker Julie Menin to ask the state for further help in covering the city’s multibillion-dollar budget shortfall — a request Gov. Kathy Hochul immediately rejected — the democratic socialist mayor was set to attend a party for the Institute for Middle East Understanding. The IMEU is a 21-year-old pro-Palestinian organization that accused Israel of genocide for years before the Oct. 7 attacks triggered the latest round of conflict with Hamas.

Mathias Döpfner, the CEO of Politico’s parent company, Axel Springer, doubled down in defense of the German publishing giant’s corporate values while addressing criticism from Politico’s editorial staff on Monday, suggesting to journalists that if they do not feel fully comfortable with a mission statement that includes support for Israel’s right to exist and other principles known as “the essentials,” they should find work elsewhere, according to audio of the discussion obtained by Jewish Insider.

“Nobody should work for Axel Springer despite the essentials or in disagreement with one of the essentials,” Döpfner said on a 40-minute call that also included feedback from Politico executives who expressed alignment with the CEO. “If the essentials are not attractive, if the essentials are not a magnet, if the essentials are not a reason why to work for this company, I can only recommend to work for other companies.”

Education Secretary Linda McMahon claimed on Tuesday that she’s trying to rebuild and expand the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR), even as the administration pushes for tens of millions in funding cuts this year.

The Trump administration cut half of OCR’s staff and nationwide offices at the outset of President Donald Trump’s second term, eliciting strong condemnation from many Jewish community groups. OCR is the primary agency responsible for investigating and adjudicating complaints of antisemitism on college campuses. 

Following a report spotlighting Qatari funding in Georgia public schools, the state’s General Assembly became the first in the country to pass legislation requiring the disclosure of foreign government funding in statewide K-12 schools.

The Foreign Funding Transparency and Accountability Act, HB 1379, requires public school districts, public universities and technical colleges to report funding of $10,000 or more from foreign countries or entities, naming specifically Qatar and Saudi Arabia — the two largest foreign funders of American universities. 

The United Arab Emirates announced on Tuesday it will withdraw from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) effective May 1, dealing a significant blow to the oil-producing bloc and its de facto leader, Saudi Arabia.

OPEC, which coordinates production policies among major oil producers to influence global supply and prices, accounts for roughly 36% of global oil output and nearly 80% of proven reserves.