Todd Schaefer
I · U.S. House, FL-4 · Tier 3/4
Tier 3/4, between “Pro-Israel, critical” and “Critical / conditions aid”
A retired Navy sailor (1998–2018) running with no party affiliation on getting money out of politics, cutting a defense budget headed past $1 trillion and “finally ending the endless wars,” he names Dennis Kucinich and Thomas Massie as models. Asked in iVoterGuide’s 2026 general-election questionnaire whether the U.S. relationship with Israel is important, Schaefer answered: “No. As a matter of fact our 'special relationship' with Israel is detrimental to our long term security and sovereignty. They are credibly accused of genocide in Gaza and both parties who are beholden to their foreign lobby have provided weapons and political cover for it. If that isn't a red line, I really have nothing more to say.”
A 3/4, on a thin record: one questionnaire answer and his campaign site’s free-speech page. Asked by iVoterGuide in 2026 whether the U.S. relationship with Israel is important, Schaefer answered “No,” calling the “special relationship” with Israel “detrimental to our long term security and sovereignty”: Israel is “credibly accused of genocide in Gaza,” and both parties, “beholden to their foreign lobby,” have given it “weapons and political cover.” He treats the genocide charge as credible and the weapons as the line (“If that isn't a red line, I really have nothing more to say”), but makes no pledge to end aid or arms. His issues page also objects to efforts to redefine hate speech “that could silence protest” and promises open debate on “issues like foreign policy without fear of reprisal”; its fuller free-speech page objects to adopting the IHRA definition of antisemitism through the Antisemitism Awareness Act, which it says “could tie federal funding (e.g., for universities or groups) to labeling criticism of Israel or its policies as ‘hate speech,’” and warns that equating anti-Jewish tropes with “legitimate protest of a foreign government” “risks chilling protected speech.” His defense-spending page counts “extensive military aid and support in Ukraine and Israel” among the foreign commitments behind the spending he wants cut, and his “Why Run Independent?” page cites “$100M from AIPAC last election cycle” as an example of how parties punish members who cross the line. Nothing in his 2025 Ballotpedia survey addresses Israel. Counter-cases: 4, if the red line is read as a call to stop the weapons; 3, since the genocide is a charge he credits rather than his own finding.
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elect26 places 2026 midterm candidates on a six-tier spectrum, from 1 (most pro-Israel) to 6 (most critical of Israel).