Vance declines to endorse Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu before Oct. 27 election, diverging from Trump’s backing and citing U.S. midterms

U.S. Vice President JD Vance declined on Monday to endorse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of Israel’s Oct. 27 election, saying his attention was on Republican candidates competing in the U.S. midterms and that he was not getting involved in Israeli politics. Vance made the remarks in an interview with journalist Mark Halperin after being asked about President Donald Trump’s endorsement of Netanyahu in a Truth Social post on Sunday.

Vance’s decision contrasts with his support for then-Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s re-election campaign in Hungary earlier this year. Vance traveled to Budapest in April to back Orbán, making his choice not to endorse Netanyahu a departure from that earlier intervention in support of an overseas political figure.

The endorsement question also comes after prior differences between Vance and Trump over their approaches to relations with Israel.