aipac

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC; /ˈeɪˌpæk/, AY-PAK) is a pro-Israel lobbying group that advocates its policies to the legislative and executive branches of the United States. It is one of several pro-Israel lobbying organizations in the United States, and has been called one of the most influential lobbying groups in the U.S. As of 2025, AIPAC says it has more than 5 million members in the U.S. From 1954 to 1959, the organization was called the American Zionist Committee for Public Affairs. The present name was deemed more descriptive of the participants.

Until 2021, AIPAC did not raise funds for political candidates itself; its members raised money for candidates through political action committees unaffiliated with AIPAC and by other means. In late 2021, AIPAC formed its own political action committee and announced plans for a Super PAC, which can spend money on candidates' behalf. AIPAC's critics have said it acts as an agent of the Israeli government and that it has a "stranglehold" on the United States Congress. AIPAC has been accused of being strongly allied with Israel's Likud party and the U.S. Republican Party. An AIPAC spokesman has called this a "malicious mischaracterization".