American Sympathy Shifts Dramatically as Gaza War Drags On
New polling shows a 21-point drop in American support for Israel since October 2023, with growing numbers expressing neutrality or sympathy for Palestinians.
As the situation in Gaza continues to unfold with a fresh push by the Israeli military, world leaders are slowly coming around to the idea of sanctioning the state. With the UK, France, Canada, and the European Union threatening sanctions on Israel, one has to wonder: where do Americans stand on the issue today?
Unsurprisingly, the Trump administration remains a staunch ally of Israel and has taken no steps to intervene in the ongoing massacre in Gaza. But what about the American public?
Let’s start with polling data from YouGov’s October 2023 survey, conducted just weeks after the October 7 attacks that reignited this cycle of violence in the region.
At that time, most Americans (48%) said their sympathies lay with the Israelis, while only 10% said they were more sympathetic toward the Palestinians. Another 23% said they were sympathetic to both sides, and 19% were unsure.
Older Americans were significantly more sympathetic toward Israel. Among those over 65, 62% sided with Israel, compared to just 5% who favored the Palestinians.
By contrast, 18 to 29-year-olds were far more divided. In that group, 35% said they sympathized more with Israel, 18% with the Palestinians, and 27% with both equally.
Predictably, Republicans overwhelmingly supported Israel, while Democrats were more mixed in their views.
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So, where do Americans stand today?
Sympathy for Israel has declined sharply. As of May 2025, only 27% of Americans say they are most sympathetic toward Israel, compared to 17% who sympathize more with the Palestinians. A larger share now say they are either sympathetic to both sides (31%) or unsure (25%), a significant shift more than a year and a half into the conflict.
The share of Americans who say they are unsure has risen across every demographic, suggesting growing confusion or perhaps disinterest in an increasingly complex and distant conflict. Still, what is clear is a gradual shift: fewer Americans sympathize with Israel, and more are moving to a neutral or Palestinian-sympathetic stance.
Notably, some who once firmly supported Israel now appear to have moved to the middle ground.
Comparing data from October 2023 and May 2025 reveals dramatic changes.
Overall, sympathy for Israel has dropped by 21 points.
The decline was most pronounced among Americans aged 45–54, where support for Israel dropped 25 points. Independents also saw a 25-point decline in sympathy toward Israel during the same period.
Even among Republicans and Democrats, support for Israel fell by 22 and 20 points, respectively.
It’s striking just how much American public opinion has shifted. But as this one-sided war drags on and media coverage increasingly focuses on the mounting Palestinian death toll, it’s less surprising that sympathies have shifted so drastically.
However, it’s important to note that this shift has been less about growing support for Palestinians and more about declining support for Israel.
During the same timeframe, sympathy for Palestinians increased by 7 points. The largest shift came among independents, who rose 11 points, followed closely by Democrats at 9 points.
The rise in sympathy for Palestinians has been relatively consistent across age groups, with Americans under 44 increasing by 9 points. Even the oldest group, those over 65, saw a 7-point increase.
That said, older Americans were far more likely to shift toward a neutral position, being sympathetic towards both sides. Compared to October 2023, the share of those 65 and older who say they’re equally sympathetic rose by 14 points. Among 45 to 54-year-olds, it rose by 11 points.
While Republicans have not become more sympathetic toward Palestinians, they are now far more likely to say they sympathize with both sides, up 15 points since late 2023.
Overall, as the war grinds on and the Palestinian death toll continues to rise, even those previously sympathetic to Israel are finding it harder to maintain that stance. With governments now beginning to consider sanctions against the Netanyahu regime, we may (hopefully) be turning a corner in this conflict toward ending the senseless massacre of civilians.