Progressive Donavan McKinney, who has pledged to sever military aid to Israel, narrowly led a U.S. House Democratic primary race in Michigan as votes were still being counted Wednesday morning.
McKinney, a state representative, is challenging incumbent U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar, a pro-Israel advocate, in Michigan’s 13th District as fierce debates over U.S. support for Israel shaped the state’s Democratic primaries. McKinney had 51.9% of the vote to Thanedar’s 48.1% after 79% of ballots were counted early Wednesday, with the race still too close to call, according to the Associated Press.

McKinney, a democratic socialist backed by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib and other prominent progressives, has largely focused his campaign on domestic issues like championing workers, reducing income inequality and bolstering public health in a district that encompasses much of Detroit and its western suburbs. A Black politician, he has also pushed for Black representation of the majority-Black district, which is the poorest in Michigan.

The last section of McKinney’s platform detailed on his campaign website is labeled “Palestine.” He vowed there to “end the military aid and arms that America gives to Israel” and to sign the Block the Bombs Act, a resolution that would prohibit the sale of certain weapons to Israel, which gained record support among Democrats in Congress earlier this year. A separate amendment that would eliminate military aid to Israel won votes from a majority of House Democrats last month, failing without support from every Republican except the one who had sponsored the measure.

“Israel needs to immediately end the genocide and release all Palestinians who have been detained, as well as allow the remains to be reunited with the families of their loved ones,” McKinney said on his website.

He added that the United States must “resume funding for UNRWA and other NGOs that aim to help end the famine, ensure full access to high-quality medical care, and provide full access to humanitarian aid for Palestinians.”

McKinney has linked the concerns of marginalized and poor people in his district to the military funds sent abroad.

“I can’t in good conscience at the federal level support sending billions — and sometimes trillions over decades — for bombs and weapons to kill families and children,” he said in an interview on Detroit Public Radio in April. “When literally in my own neighborhood I have to witness and see my neighbors struggling day to day.”

Thanedar, a millionaire businessman who was previously himself a DSA member, has bucked the trend of his party by boosting his support for Israel over recent years. As a state legislator in 2021, Thanedar co-sponsored legislation calling to end military aid to Israel. After he was elected to Congress in 2022, he took an AIPAC-sponsored trip to Israel and became a staunch Israel advocate.
Thanedar renounced his DSA membership after the Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, citing a New York City rally hosted by the party the next day in which some speakers praised the attacks. He called the event “hate-filled and antisemitic.” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, one of Israel’s most stalwart Democratic supporters, has endorsed Thanedar. 

Thanedar has highlighted a platform of progressive issues including affordability, public housing, universal healthcare and abolishing the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. He has faced criticism throughout his political career for accepting donations from corporate PACs and for a personal fortune that allowed him to largely self-fund his campaigns. 

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee fundraised for Thanedar during his contest with McKinney. But the pro-Israel group has focused its strongest efforts in Michigan this cycle on defending pro-Israel moderate Rep. Haley Stevens against progressive Israel critic Abdul El-Sayed for the Democratic nomination for Senate, funneling a record-breaking $31 million into Stevens’ campaign. El-Sayed had a narrow lead over Stevens on Wednesday morning as votes continued to be tallied.

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