US Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT). Source: Reuters Connect

US Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT) clashed with controversial anti-Israel journalist Mehdi Hasan over the role that the Israel-Hamas war played in the defeat of Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris to now-President Donald Trump in November. 

During a wide-ranging conversation which aired on Wednesday and touched on Himes’s voting record and the Democratic Party’s performance in the opening months of the Trump administration, Hasan asked Himes whether he believed Israel’s war effort lowered turnout among liberal voters in November’s presidential election. Himes cast doubt upon these claims, arguing that the war in Gaza has not been a major priority for most American voters.

Hasan mentioned that “a lot of voters who voted for [former US President Joe] Biden [in] 2020 but didn’t show up for Kamala Harris [in] 2024, Gaza was one of their top issues.” The commentator claimed that young voters, in particular, were disillusioned by Biden’s refusal to “disown” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his refusal to stop arming the Jewish state with US weapons. 

Himes said that Democrats likely “lost Gaza on both sides” and cautioned that turning against Israel could cost the party support from American Jews. Hasan interjected, arguing that the Democrats hemorrhaged support among the electorate due to their backing of a so-called “genocide.” 

The congressman conceded that he does not believe there is an “obvious answer” to whether the Israel-Hamas war cost Harris the election. However, he claimed that the Democrats will continue to “grapple with” the morality of Israel’s military effort against Hamas and its impact on the Palestinian people. 

There is scant evidence to bolster the argument that the Israel-Hamas war cost Harris the 2024 presidential election. According to a poll produced by Blueprint, a self-described “public opinion research initiative,” perception of Harris as “too pro-Israel” ranked among the lowest concerns that the electorate had with the Democratic presidential nominee. Among “all voters,” regardless of their political views, the prompt “Kamala Harris is too pro-Israel” was one of the bottom three “reasons to not choose” Harris. Notably, according to the data analytics firm, voters were somewhat more likely to vote against Harris for being “too pro-Palestine.”

The interview between Himes and Hasan aired on Zeteo, a newly formed media network, which has positioned itself as a major source of anti-Israel content creation. Hasan, the network’s founder and main host, has declared the ongoing war in Gaza a “genocide” and repeatedly pressured US lawmakers to implement an arms embargo against the Jewish state. 

Zeteo’s high production value and elaborate sets have raised questions surrounding its funding sources, with critics alleging it has received money from Qatar. In response, Hasan has denied receiving “any money from foreign governments or foreign citizens,” adding that “every investor in Z is an American citizen [who] has nothing to do with Qatar.”