Daniel Biss Deserves Pro-Israel Support

Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss is the frontrunner in the crowded Illinois Ninth Congressional District Democratic primary to succeed retiring Rep. Jan Schakowsky. Schakowsky recently endorsed Biss, cementing his status as the leading candidate. 

AIPAC, likely using its super PAC, is preparing ads targeting Biss and is supporting state senator Laura Fine, although Fine has been reticent to acknowledge AIPAC’s support.

I’ve known Biss for nearly 20 years, and over the years I’ve had lengthy conversations with him about Israel, antisemitism, and other issues. His support for Israel comes from his heart as well as his intellect, and he does not define support for Israel as mindlessly following the Likud or AIPAC line. 

Biss is the grandson of Holocaust survivors who moved to Israel in 1948, settling in Herzliya to rebuild their lives after their parents and many other relatives perished. Much of his extended family lives in Israel today. 

Biss grew up with two passports, spending every summer in Israel throughout his childhood in the 1980s and early 90s, occasionally having to limit movement and activities because of terrorist attacks, but more often enjoying social time and meals with relatives.

Biss spent a semester in Israel as an undergraduate, studying linguistics at Tel Aviv University and mathematics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem after spending a month studying Hebrew at the Ulpan Akiva in Netanya.  

October 7 was personal for Biss, as it was for so many of us: His pregnant first cousin went into reserve duty after October 7, committed to do her part to help defend Israel and heal a traumatized nation.

Those who say Biss is not pro-Israel cite his support for the Block the Bombs Act. Either they haven’t read the bill or they are hoping you haven’t read it. The Block the Bombs Act had 60 cosponsors in the last Congress, including Reps. Jan Schakowsky and Jamie Raskin. 

It covers only a few specific weapons systems, and even for those, the president can still sell or transfer them to Israel as long as Congress approves. It won’t pass and probably won’t even be called for a vote even if Democrats regain control of Congress. It’s mainly a signal of discontent with how Israel used/misused those specific weapons during the Gaza War and a signal not to do that again.

It shouldn’t be an issue in this race at all, but Biss’s opponents, some of whom should know better, are making it an issue by misrepresenting what the bill would do if it passed. Whether the bill was a good idea at the time or whether it is still a good idea (the Gaza war is largely over, but the current government of Israel remains in power) is a question reasonable minds can differ on. I would not tell anyone to vote for or against any candidate because of their position on this bill. Then again, I’ve read the bill.

Some disagree with Biss’s support for recognizing a Palestinian state. Recognizing a Palestinian state does not mean creating a Palestinian state right now or in the near future. It means laying down a marker against Republican and Likud opposition to a two-state solution and making clear that post-Gaza, the end result of any plan must be progress toward a Palestinian state and a Jewish state living side by side in peace and security. 

Some disagree with Biss’s decision to respect the views of Evanston’s police department that encampments at Northwestern University did not present a public safety threat and that mass arrests were likely to escalate, not de-escalate, the situation. You don’t shut down protests because they are offensive, even if they are deeply offensive. You shut them down if they are public safety threats. The experts believed strongly that the Northwestern encampment was not a public safety threat. Biss acted accordingly. Bear in mind that Northwestern’s request that police clear the encampments came the day the encampments went up, before Northwestern had tried any intermediate action.

You can read for yourself Biss’s response to the mudslinging against him in this race, which could serve as a model for how candidates should respond to smear campaigns. See for yourself where he stands on Israel and where he stands on AIPAC. You’ll see that he is a strong friend of Israel and supports measures that will ensure Israel’s future as a Jewish, democratic state.

Biss ordered Evanston police not to cooperate with ICE, got rid of license plate readers when he found out ICE was using them, has held “Know Your Rights” events to help the community defend itself, and was tear-gassed while protesting ICE raids.

Some candidates in this race have been successful, to varying degrees, in rolling up their sleeves and getting things done in government. Others have been in the streets resisting Trump’s authoritarianism. Biss is the only candidate in this race who has done both, and he’s done both better than any of the other candidates. 

Recently released campaign finance reports show that Fine’s congressional campaign raised more money in the fourth quarter of 2025 from donors who previously gave to Donald Trump ($53,350) than from donors living in Illinois’ 9th Congressional District ($32,795). Since launching her campaign, Fine has taken in nearly $60,000 from Trump donors, who have collectively given more than $200,000 to Trump’s political committees.

No wonder Schakowsky endorsed Biss to succeed her in Congress. Illinois House Majority Leader Robyn Gabel endorsed Biss. Both are accomplished legislators. Both are Jewish. Both were represented by Biss in the Illinois Senate. Both are currently represented by Laura Fine in the Illinois Senate. Both live in Evanston, where Biss is mayor. They’ve seen what both can do. So have I. Daniel Biss is the clear choice.

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