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As the pro-Israel<\/span> lobby seeks to shape a set of congressional races in Illinois, national progressive groups are pushing to elect a vocal advocate for Palestinian rights outside of Chicago.\u00a0<\/p>\n The national progressive outfit Justice Democrats and the Peace, Accountability, and Leadership PAC, a new group that launched Wednesday<\/a> to support candidates advocating for Palestine in the upcoming midterms, are endorsing activist Kat Abughazaleh for Congress in Illinois\u2019s 9th District.\u00a0<\/p>\n The endorsement comes as the American Israel Public Affairs Committee has made its biggest investment so far this cycle in electing pro-Israel Democrats in and around deep-blue Chicago, which is home to one of the nation\u2019s largest populations of Palestinian residents.\u00a0<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Abughazaleh is one of over a dozen candidates<\/a> running in the Democratic primary to replace retiring Rep. Jan Schakowsky. Also running are state Sen. Laura Fine, Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss, local school board member and activist Bushra Amiwala, former hostage negotiator and agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigation Phil Andrew, and state Rep. Hoan Huynh.\u00a0<\/p>\n Schakowsky was a longtime recipient of support from J-Street, a moderate pro-Israel group, and AIPAC appears to view the race as an opportunity to replace her with a more hardline supporter of Israel. The pro-Israel lobby has already taken one opportunity to go after a centrist who strayed from its party line, when it ran attack ads against former New Jersey Democratic Rep. Tom Malinowski \u2014 a strategy that appeared to backfire<\/a> and ultimately help get the progressive<\/a> in the race elected.<\/p>\n Now, pro-Palestine groups see an opening in Chicago amid mounting public criticism of the pro-Israel lobby.<\/p>\n Both groups said the endorsement was a reflection of a historic level of public support for Palestinian human rights and cutting U.S. funding to Israel. Abughazaleh is the 12th candidate<\/a> Justice Democrats has endorsed this cycle<\/a> as it looks to more aggressively counter the pro-Israel lobby and come back<\/a> from major losses in 2024.<\/p>\n Abughazaleh told The Intercept she\u2019s running to hold Democrats to a higher standard.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s been this idea of \u2018vote blue no matter who\u2019 for a long time that has gotten us to the moment that we\u2019re in, because we haven\u2019t held our Party accountable,\u201d she said. She added that she was the first candidate to launch her campaign in the race before Schakowsky announced her retirement.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t wait in line or ask for permission,\u201d Abughazaleh said. \u201cI think a big part of that is because I felt a sense of urgency that many establishment politicians just don\u2019t because they\u2019re not facing the consequences that we are.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cKat has spent her career doing what so many voters are desperate to see the Democratic Party do right now: fight back against Republican extremism and fight for everyday people,\u201d Justice Democrats spokesperson Usamah Andrabi said in a statement to The Intercept.\u00a0\u201cAt a time when so many career politicians in the Party have to be convinced to condemn genocide, we are proud to support a first-time candidate with the moral clarity to oppose bottomless budgets for Israel\u2019s ethnic cleansing, abolish ICE and fight for every person to afford the life they deserve.\u201d<\/p>\n While AIPAC hasn\u2019t officially endorsed in the race, its donors have made their pick clear. AIPAC donors have flooded<\/a> Fine\u2019s campaign and sent fundraising emails on her behalf. AIPAC is also reportedly<\/a> behind just under half a million dollars in ads launched last week for Fine by the Super PAC Elect Chicago Women<\/a>. Fine has distanced herself from AIPAC and said she isn\u2019t seeking its support \u2014 despite fundraising<\/a> with AIPAC\u2019s board president.<\/p>\n Abughazaleh, a Palestinian American activist, has made her criticism of the genocide in Gaza and U.S. military support for Israel a central piece of her campaign. She\u2019s also facing a federal indictment<\/a> on felony conspiracy charges stemming from protest actions against Immigration and Customs Enforcement. She turned her congressional office into a mutual aid hub and is running on Medicare for All, fixing the affordable housing crisis, and fighting authoritarianism.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAIPAC is so toxic that they have been doing everything they can to pretend that they are not in our race when they very clearly are,\u201d Abughazaleh said. She said voters \u201cunderstand the stakes, and they\u2019re sick of their tax dollars being used to commit crimes against humanity.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n