Reese Witherspoon broke down in tears after learning that The Morning Show is officially coming to an end.

Witherspoon, 50, and her co-star Jennifer Aniston, 57, shared touching posts within hours of the announcement by Apple TV+ that the series would end after season five.

The fifth and final season, which wrapped filming on Wednesday night, will premiere in 2027 and reunite Aniston and Witherspoon with co-stars Mark Duplass, Billy Crudup, Nestor Carbonell, Karen Pittman, Nicole Beharie and Jon Hamm.

The show will also bring fresh talent into the mix including Jeff Daniels, Renee Rapp, Jesse Williams, Sean Hayes and Lizzy Caplan.

Though Aniston and Witherspoon both knew going in that this would be their last season, it’s obviously going to take time to digest.

Aniston, who is settling into her recently renovated Montecito property, took to Instagram to share photos from the Los Angeles set, including a picture of Duplass, who plays Charlie ‘Chip’ Black and longtime confidant to Aniston’s character Alex, giving Aniston and a weeping Witherspoon a consolatory hug.

Witherspoon, 50, and Aniston, 57, shared touching posts within hours of Apple’s announcement that the drama would end after season five

Another image showed her and Witherspoon sitting on their high chairs and having a belly laugh.

A third photo showed an empty control room with screens on, showing Aniston and Witherspoon having what looked like a closing face-off.

‘Laughing and crying. Final season of @themorningshow incoming… MUCH more to come. @appletv,’ the former Friends actress wrote in the caption.

Witherspoon offered fans of the show an Instagram reel of behind-the-scenes moments: sharing a hug with Aniston; both of them pointing to a golden plaque commemorating The Morning Show; enjoying an outdoor chat with Crudup; on a coffee break outside her trailer; and hanging out with other members of the cast and crew.

‘Eight years ago, we decided to tell a story about the people who bring us the news… A story about ambition, truth, power,’ Witherspoon wrote across the fleeting images.

‘Throughout five seasons, these characters challenged each other and challenged us. Because journalism isn’t just about reporting a story, it’s about finding the humanity.

‘But you’re only as good as the people you work with… and wow, how lucky am I to work with the BEST?!

‘Thank you to every cast and crew member who brought this story to life. Now… who’s ready for one more intense & dramatic final season of The Morning Show?!’

The Morning Show wrapped its last episode on Wednesday night; Aniston and Witherspoon were clearly feeling emotional in this moment shared by Witherspoon

Witherspoon and Aniston hugged it out as reality over the show’s conclusion set in

The fifth and final season of The Morning Show is scheduled to air sometime in 2027

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‘It has been a stellar creative experience – one I will always treasure,’ Witherspoon said in a statement released earlier on Thursday

She captioned the clip: ‘8 years. 5 seasons. So many memories. I can’t wait for you to see the final season of @themorningshow !’

In a statement released earlier in the day, Aniston was philosophical, saying: ‘Going in knowing it would be our last, we were so fortunate to craft the conclusion with intentionality, and honor these characters the way they deserve.’

‘From the beginning, Apple has supported our vision for The Morning Show, and we feel so lucky to have had the opportunity to tell stories that reflect what’s happening in the world around us with a twist of dark humor.’

The star, who, like Witherspoon, is also an executive producer on the show, added: ‘It’s been such a privilege to work with this insanely talented cast, and our extraordinary writers, producers and crew. We’ve become such a family, and we’re all so excited to share this final season.’

‘This was always more than a show about a newsroom – it was a show about why the newsroom matters,’ Witherspoon said in a statement. ‘About freedom of the press, and the journalists who protect the fourth estate, often at great cost. Telling that story has been the creative privilege of my career.’

She concluded by thanking Apple, the writers, crew and cast: ‘It has been a stellar creative experience – one I will always treasure.’

The shock end of The Morning Show comes weeks after Aniston bid an emotional farewell to her ‘father figure’ James Burrows following his death.

The acclaimed television director, whose credits included The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Taxi, Cheers, Frasier, Will and Grace, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Two and a Half Men, Mike and Molly and The Big Bang Theory, passed away on June 19 at the age of 85, and Aniston admitted she felt the ‘pressure’ to craft a message that matched the love he had always shown her and her co-stars while making Friends.

Though Aniston and Witherspoon both knew going in that this would be their last season, it’s obviously going to take time to digest

‘Oh boy … Papa Burrows. The hardest thing about writing this is that you spent a lifetime making people feel loved, and now it feels impossible to put all of that love into a few paragraphs.’

‘He called us his “kids” — “Where are the kids?” “Let’s see if the kids can make the joke work.” No pressure.’

‘His own incredible children were generous enough to share him with all of us who were lucky enough to experience his unicorn presence.’

‘He was a father figure to me. He always checked in on me. He worried about me, celebrated me, taught me, guided me and held me through the hardest times and the best of times. He spoiled us rotten.’

She added: ‘Most of all, he taught us — the kids — how important it is to love and respect one another. To take care of each other. To have each other’s backs and support each other, no matter what. And we did just that.(sic)’

The House of the Virgin Mary is a shrine located in Ephesus, Turkey, where the mother of Jesus is believed to have spent her final years. Thousands of miles away, nestled in a field outside Manila, a replica in the Philippines welcomes devotees in Asia’s biggest Catholic nation.

“The idea began as a place of refuge,” said Dennis Paez, the priest who led the project. “This is a place where no questions (are) asked.”

The replica was inaugurated in 2024 in Alfonso, a town in Cavite province about 70 kilometers (45 miles) south of the capital. Since opening, it has hosted Catholic pilgrimages, including celebrations for the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in mid-July. The 67-square-meter (720-square-foot) structure mirrors the exact dimensions, shape and look of every stone at the original site.

According to Catholic tradition, the house in Ephesus is where Mary spent much of her life after Jesus’ crucifixion and before her assumption into heaven. The apostle John is said to have brought her to the region to escape persecution in Jerusalem.

Paez said the replica took about 10 months to complete. Workers of different faiths took part in the construction, something Paez viewed as the Virgin Mary bringing all of her children together.

“The apostolate of this place is to accept people with unconditional positive regard,” added Paez, who is also a psychologist specializing in supporting youth. “There is no therapy here. The therapist is our Mother.”

Marian devotion shapes Filipino faith

In the country of about 113 million people, nearly 80% identify as Catholic.

Philippine faithful often refer to the Virgin Mary as the Blessed Mother. Processions honoring her are held regularly throughout the country.

“We are a long-suffering people,” Paez said. “Our wealth is really our faith and our faith is such like that because of the Blessed Mother.”

Religious historian Michael Delos Reyes said that Filipino devotion to the Virgin Mary dates back to the time Spanish colonizers introduced Christianity in the 16th century. However, that devotion has also found expression in more recent moments of the country’s history.

Delos Reyes said that some attributed the 1986 People Power Revolution that led to the ouster of then-President Ferdinand Marcos to the Virgin’s intercession. And in 2013, when the Typhoon Haiyan ravaged Tacloban, devotees looked to the Blessed Mother for hope.

Filipinos turn to Mary for comfort

“To Jesus through Mary” is a phrase that reflects the central place Mary holds in Filipino Catholic life.

“Her maternal dimension is what Filipinos find meaningful, as well as her power to intercede on believers’ behalf,” said Deirdre de la Cruz, a professor of history and Southeast Asian studies at the University of Michigan.

Marian iconography and rosaries frequently adorn Filipino cars, public transportation, individual altars and shrines both in urban and rural landscapes, De la Cruz added.

“As someone who is known to provide comfort, Mary is a very familiar figure and someone to whom one can appeal in difficult times,” she said.

Daphne Oseña Paez, who recently visited the replica, said that despite being raised Catholic her devotion was not as strong as it became in adulthood. It began with a trip to Mexico, where she saw the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and it deepened years later after enduring a difficult pregnancy that made her seek refuge in her faith.

“We don’t pray to Mary herself, but Mary intercedes for us,” Oseña Paez said. “In my times of trouble, and I’ve had a lot, I really clung on to the love and comfort of her as a mother.”

A pilgrimage closer to home

Donated Marian icons line the walls inside the replica. At the center stands a statue of Mary modeled after the one in Turkey, alongside a relic said to be from her veil.

Most of the displayed images were donated by art collector and Philippine culture advocate Maritess Pineda. She said her devotion to Mary led her to start a collection that has finally found a home.

Other Filipinos felt drawn to contribute in their own way. Rupert Suarez and his wife had visited the House of the Virgin Mary in Ephesus years earlier. When he learned about plans to build a replica in the Philippines, he joined the the project.

“I usually pray to the Mother,” Suarez said. “It’s so very blessed that we already have this replica built.”

The site has received little public promotion since its inauguration. Yet Father Paez said pilgrims have visited.

“I don’t at all think that it is me bringing them,” Paez said. “It’s The Blessed Mother asking them, inviting them to come.”

___

Hernández reported from Beijing.

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Need Me will be released on Friday (July 24) and is due to be the second song from the York group since they announced they would be releasing music independently.

The band’s guitarist, Turnbull Smith, said: “Need Me is a song we’ve been working on for many years. It’s deep and means the world to us.

“I hope you can feel the energy and raw emotion of the tack.”

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The release comes after Skylights’ first song since returning, Fever, charted at number four in the official UK vinyl single charts.

Skylights were kept off the number one vinyl spot by pop giant Ariana Grande whose new single, Hate That You Made Me Love You, peaked at number one during its first week.

Grande was followed in the official vinyl single charts by Dinner Party by Niall Horan at number two and Down Below by Jayler at number three.

Skylights did, however, chart ahead of rock legends the Rolling Stones whose single, In the Stars, dropped to number six in the vinyl charts in the song’s third week of release.

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Terry Wilkinson died on June 16, at The Medical Group, McKenzie House GP practice in Esh Winning.

The 72-year-old had been at the same practice four days prior after being advised to go following a 111 call complaining of chest, arm and jaw pain.

Wilkinson saw his GP the same day and was prescribed aspirin and a glycerine nitrate spray.

He later returned on June 16 for blood tests. Coroner’s Officer Kelly Taylor, told the court: “However Mr Wilkinson became unresponsive while the nurse was taking blood. CPR was carried out until paramedics attended.”

The initial cause of death was stated as “ruptured dissection of the ascending thoracic aorta” – a burst blood vessel – before HM Senior Coroner Jeremy Chipperfield, on July 21.

Dr. Sam Hoggard conducted the post-mortem examination at the RVI in Newcastle and he was identified by Kate Johnson, Nurse on to PC 9911 Wilkinson in the treatment room, The Medical Group, McKenzie House.

The inquest has been adjourned and is set to resume on August 24 at 10am in Redhills , Durham.

His comments, made during his first visit as Speaker to Washington to celebrate 250 years of American independence, come against the backdrop of the ongoing Ukraine war, transatlantic tensions and concerns over Mr Trump’s commitment to Nato and European security, with a basing review of US forces.

Arsonists have been accused of using stray cats as living fire-starters to ignite devastating wildfires that have ravaged southern Italy.

Investigators probing the blazes in Calabria claim they discovered evidence that cats had been fitted with rags soaked in flammable liquid, which were then set alight before the terrified animals were released into dry vegetation to spread the flames.

Candles and homemade delayed ignition devices were also reportedly found close to burnt-out areas, strengthening suspicions that many of the fires were started deliberately.

The alleged tactic emerged as firefighters battled infernos that have torn through the Pollino National Park, one of Italy’s largest protected areas, where around 1,000 hectares of vegetation have already been destroyed after days of intense firefighting.

Authorities said the combination of scorching temperatures, drought and strong winds allowed the flames to spread rapidly across the rugged landscape. 

Domenico Costarella, head of Calabria’s Civil Protection agency, described the horrifying method used by suspected arsonists.

‘These animals were released into the fields, running around and spreading the fire,’ he said. 

Mr Costarella said more than 160 fires had been recorded across Calabria in recent days, blaming many of them on what he called ‘malicious individuals’ rather than natural causes. 

Flames and thick smoke rise into the sky as wildfires ravaged the forested hills of Castelluzzo, a hamlet of San Vito Lo Capo in Italy’s Trapani province

He warned that tackling the problem would require ‘a shift in mindset… These are inhumane acts. Sadly, men are their own worst enemies.’ 

Animal welfare campaigners reacted with outrage after the allegations emerged.

Italy’s Association for the Defence of Animals and the Environment has announced a €1,000 (£870) reward for information leading to those responsible being identified and convicted, while campaigners have also lodged criminal complaints with prosecutors.

Disturbingly, investigators say this is not the first time animals have allegedly been exploited to spread wildfires in Italy.

Authorities previously linked similar attacks to organised crime groups in Sicily, where cats were allegedly used to ignite fires in the Nebrodi Regional Park in 2016. 

The following year, investigators said the Camorra mafia employed the same tactic to spark blazes in protected woodland below Mount Vesuvius, forcing evacuations and prompting the deployment of the Italian army.

Researchers have previously suggested that some deliberately lit fires are linked to criminal attempts to devalue land before buying it cheaply or to gain control of territory, although each incident is investigated on its own evidence.

In Sicily, around 6,000 firefighters, forest guards and civil protection workers have been battling dozens of blazes despite the use of water-bombing aircraft. 

Italy’s Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi confirmed that one firefighter lost his life while tackling the flames, while officials warned that exceptionally high temperatures and tinder-dry ground continue to fuel the emergency.

Flames and thick smoke rise into the sky as wildfires ravaged the forested hills of Castelluzzo

A fireman runs away from blazes as he tries to control a wildfire in New Peramos, near Athens

Across Italy, more than 11,500 hectares of land have already been scorched during the latest heatwave sweeping southern Europe.

The wildfire emergency has also spread across neighbouring countries.

In south-west France, more than 20,000 residents and holidaymakers have been evacuated after fast-moving fires ripped through thousands of hectares of pine forest west of Bordeaux. 

Authorities called in aircraft from other European nations as flames advanced towards coastal communities.

Philippe de Gonneville, mayor of Lège-Cap-Ferret, said: ‘The weather is not on our side.’

Spain is also battling multiple major wildfires, with thousands of residents ordered to flee homes west of Madrid while another enormous blaze in Guadalajara province has consumed more than 32,000 hectares.

According to the European Forest Fire Information System, around 250,000 hectares have burned across Europe so far this year – almost double the long-term average despite remaining slightly below the same point last year.

The 38-year-old man was working on a crane before he died at work

A mum has questioned whether “pressure” was put on her son to finish a job before he died in a workplace accident, an inquest has heard. Adam William Duroe-Mayo, 38, died in St Neots on February 3, 2025, after working on a crane.

A pre-inquest review hearing into his death held on Wednesday (July 22) heard that Adam was in an “area that wasn’t safe for him to be in” when the accident happened, as stated by Coroner Simon Milburn.

His cause of death was confirmed to be a “subarachnoid haemorrhage caused by skull fractures” as a result of a “blunt force trauma to the head”.

The court heard that Adam was “working alone” at the time of the incident, as two other workers who were helping him had left. Mr Milburn said these two workers, who will be called as live witnesses at the inquest, had “left to do another job”.

Adam’s parents attended the pre-inquest hearing. His mother, Mrs Duroe-Mayo, questioned if the other two workers could have “seen the first job through”.

Mrs Duroe-Mayo then told the court that Adam was “seen on the phone” to someone at Lodge Tyres, who he worked for. She claims that Adam was told to “finish the job”, but added that “no one knows what he was told”.

She added: “There is always going to be hearsay. It’s going to be one of those things of who knows what was said.” She then claimed that there was an “awful lot of pressure” on Adam to “get things done”.

Mr Milburn told Mrs Duroe-Mayo that these questions would be answered in the scope of the full inquest, which aims to find out what happened on the day Adam died.

Later in the hearing, Mr Milburn said a health and safety specialist would look at two potential causes of the accident in the next inquest. These would be whether there was an “over-inflation of the tyre” and whether that was an “operator error or an issue with the inflator”. The other potential cause is if there was “potential for the locking ring to have been inserted the wrong way up”.

Six live witnesses are expected to be called to the inquest. These will be: two from crane company Ainscough; potentially three from Lodge Tyres; and a health and safety executive inspector who assessed the site. Other witness statements are expected to be read out will be from the post mortem report, toxicology report, and police officers who attended at the time.

A jury will also be called to the inquest, which is expected to last three days. It is expected to take place in early 2027.

A New York City man is in custody after he allegedly stabbed two men outside a synagogue while yelling ‘Allahu Akbar.’

Raul Morales, 51, was apprehended for the attack on Thursday afternoon shortly after police said he stabbed a 57-year-old man in the torso at around 1.30pm then struck a 50-year-old man outside an Orthodox synagogue near Central Park.

Both victims, an unidentified Asian man and a Jewish man, were then transported to Mt Sinai-St Luke’s Hospital, where they are expected to survive, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.

Meanwhile, Morales was taken into custody at an apartment building a couple of blocks away from the scene of the stabbing spree after Tisch said a ‘good Samaritan’ led officers to where he was hiding. 

Detectives are still working to determine a motive for the attack, but according to victim and witness statements, ‘Morales yelled “Allahu Akbar” during both attacks,’ and officers are now investigating ‘whether this is a potential hate crime,’ Tisch wrote on social media.

Mental health may have also played a factor in the attack, Tisch said, adding that investigators have not yet found a ‘link between Morales and either of the victims, nor between the victims and each other.’

As the investigation into the stabbings now continues, Mayor Zohran Mamdani asserted: ‘These hateful and despicable attacks have no place in our city.’

He said he had been briefed on the incident and was ‘relieved that both victims are in stable condition’ as well as ‘grateful to the officers for their swift response.’

Members of the NYPD Crime Scene Unit investigate the scene of a stabbing attack on Thursday

The attack allegedly began when Morales jumped the first victim, a 57-year-old Asian man, near West 84th Street and Central Park West and stabbed him in the back at around 1.30pm, according to the New York Post.

The second victim, a 50-year-old man wearing a yarmulke, was then attacked after leaving a synagogue at Amsterdam Avenue and West 86th Street – and was said to have been stabbed in the torso with a screwdriver.

Morales then allegedly barricaded himself inside a New York City Housing Authority apartment a few blocks away, but was arrested at around 2.45pm.

Nava Silton, who had been speaking with the second victim inside the Jewish Center ahead of the attack, described how Morales ‘tried to act like a normal person and that he wasn’t involved, and muttering “Someone should call 911,” literally pretending he was not culpable.’ 

She also said the victim told her how ‘someone drew a screwdriver into the right side of my chest.’

‘It was serious, but he’s speaking and he’s conscious,’ she told the Post, calling the victim ‘an incredible person’ who had been leaving Tisha B’av services when he was attacked. 

Marianna Ellenberg also recounted how she saw the wife of the first victim watch in horror as her husband was randomly knifed in the back. 

Authorities arrested Raul Morales, 51, in connection with the attack at a nearby apartment building

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‘We saw her covering her mouth. She was just scared,’ Ellenberg said. ‘Like it was a surreal image because it was a bright, sunny 1.30pm, Upper West Side, Central Park West day and there was just this cry.’ 

Morris Dahan, a member of Manhattan Shomrim, a volunteer civilian watch group in Orthodox Jewish communities, also said it was ‘unbelievable’ how cops managed to pull Morales out of the apartment building.

‘He was inside of an apartment and they went in there, 50, 60 cops with dogs, canine, sledgehammers, whatever they need to break in to doors. And sure enough, 15 minutes later, they came out with him.’

This is a breaking news story and will be updated. 

SOUTH HAVEN, Mich. (AP) — Senate candidate Haley Stevens talks often about manufacturing, taking on President Donald Trump and why she’s the Democrat best positioned to win Michigan. The congresswoman has far less to say about the pro-Israel group that has spent millions trying to get her elected.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, and its affiliated groups have spent close to $30 million backing Stevens — their largest investment ever in a single race — as they seek to defeat progressive favorite Abdul El-Sayed in the Aug. 4 primary.

Stevens has largely avoided discussing the organization directly, even as its spending has reshaped the race. Asked twice about AIPAC during a July campaign stop in West Michigan, she responded for more than 800 words without mentioning the group a single time. Israel came up only once, when she said she “wanted to see the U.S. and Israel working together to rebuild Gaza.”

“Anyone who supported me is supporting me because of my dedication to the people of Michigan, and the things that I have done for Michiganders,” Stevens told The Associated Press when asked whether she welcomed AIPAC’s support.

The exchange illustrates how politically fraught AIPAC has become in Democratic politics as the war in Gaza has divided the party over U.S. support for Israel. AIPAC works to elect lawmakers who support its mission of strengthening the U.S.-Israel relationship and advancing policies it says enhance the security of both countries.

AIPAC did not respond to a request for comment. The organization’s super PAC, United Democracy Project, declined to comment.

The issue carries particular weight in Michigan, home to the nation’s largest Arab American population. Beyond Michigan, El-Sayed’s progressive allies are framing the race as a broader test of whether grassroots organizing can overcome unprecedented outside spending.

“One of the laws of nature in politics is whoever spends the most money wins,” said New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who has been campaigning for El-Sayed in Michigan this weekend.

“It is an opportunity to show that things other than money can win in America.”

Stevens has spent $1 million on advertising. Her backers have spent $50 million

The four-term congresswoman raised half of what El-Sayed did in the latest fundraising period until June 30. Her team said in a statement that the campaign “is raising the resources we need to win this race.”

She spent only $12,000 of her own campaign funds on advertising through early July, before bumping it up to close to $1 million, according to AdImpact. Outside organizations, meanwhile, have poured close to $50 million into boosting her candidacy. One of them, A Stronger Michigan, has spent roughly $12 million without disclosing its donors.

El-Sayed has made AIPAC and the tens of millions of dollars spent to support Stevens a centerpiece of his campaign. He and his allies have accused Stevens as being a mouthpiece for her large donors.

“She is nothing more than an employee of these billionaires,” said Sen. Bernie Sanders, who is also campaigning with El-Sayed this weekend at rallies in Detroit, Lansing and Grand Rapids.

Stevens has said she supports “comprehensive campaign finance reform.”

Most voters are unlikely to realize many of the ads blanketing Michigan’s airwaves are funded by AIPAC. They never mention Israel, instead highlighting Stevens’ work on manufacturing and featuring former President Barack Obama.

“AIPAC never runs on AIPAC. They never even talk about Israel and Palestine,” said former Rep. Andy Levin, whom Stevens defeated in a 2022 Democratic primary after redistricting. AIPAC spent millions opposing Levin, who is Jewish. “If you’re just a voter and you see a million ads, you don’t know who paid for it.”

A stark divide on Israel in a state with large Muslim and Jewish populations

The surge of spending from AIPAC comes as the Democratic candidates have taken sharply different positions on Israel’s war in Gaza.

While Stevens is not Jewish, she has long been one of Congress’ most outspoken supporters of Israel. She has described herself as a “proud pro-Israel Democrat” and once said during a Hanukkah celebration that “Israel comes to me in my dreams.”

Stevens has criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. During a recent debate, she said he “has not made us safer, has not brought us closer to peace, and he’s endangered Jews here in America and around the world.”

El-Sayed has embraced the contrast. The son of Egyptian immigrants, he has called Israel’s military campaign in Gaza a “genocide,” described the Israeli government as “evil,” and repeatedly argued that AIPAC’s influence distorts Democratic politics.

“The reason that we’ve seen this war fought is because of the impact of AIPAC in our politics,” El-Sayed said during a recent debate.

The war in Gaza began after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attacks in Israel that killed about 1,200 people and took 251 hostage. It has since waged on for over 1,000 days. Israel has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians in its retaliatory offensive, Gaza’s Health Ministry said.

If elected, El-Sayed would become the first Muslim U.S. senator. He recently addressed questions about whether his faith would hurt his electability in the battleground state.

“When they raise questions about my ‘electability,’ they are usually pointing to the most obvious thing about me that makes me ‘different’ — that’s my name and my Muslim faith,” he wrote in an email to supporters. “Faith, to me, isn’t just about an identity. It’s about the choices that I make every single day about how I live my life.”

El-Sayed has spent about $3.2 million from his own campaign account on advertising, with around $1 million in outside spending. His campaign has instead emphasized grassroots organizing, saying it has recruited more than 10,000 volunteers statewide.

Asked how many volunteers Stevens has, her campaign said it has “hundreds across Michigan.”

“This election will come down to the many versus the money,” El-Sayed wrote.

The Democratic divide is occurring beyond Michigan

Once-firm support for Israel has eroded within parts of the Democratic Party in the fallout from the war in Gaza. As divisions over Israel have deepened, criticism of AIPAC has intensified.

Earlier this week, 103 House Democrats voted unsuccessfully to block $3.3 billion in U.S. aid to Israel, the clearest sign yet of the party’s divide. Among them was New York Rep. Pat Ryan, who had previously voted to send aid to Israel and accepted support from AIPAC.

“I expect groups like AIPAC will not support me in my future elections and frankly, I don’t want their support,” Ryan said on social media, later adding that he was returning the money.

The tension also played out in 2024. In Michigan’s Senate race, Democratic activists pressured now-Sen. Elissa Slotkin to take a harder line on Israel’s war in Gaza. Slotkin, who is Jewish, had already distanced herself from AIPAC years earlier. She ultimately defeated Republican Mike Rogers by fewer than 20,000 votes.

Rogers is running for Senate again this year, and is unopposed in the GOP primary.

While the issue still remains divisive for Democrats, some question whether it will ultimately shape how most primary voters cast their ballots, with concerns such as the economy carrying greater weight.

“It’s not that Democratic primary voters love AIPAC. They obviously don’t,” said Michigan political strategist Adrian Hemond. “But this doesn’t even register as an issue that’s influencing voting behavior for the overwhelming majority of primary voters.”