How many "Israel-first" believers are in America?

While there is no official census for "Israel-first" believers, the term is frequently used in current political discourse to describe Americans—primarily Christian Zionists—who believe that supporting the state of 

Israel

 is a theological or moral imperative that should be a non-negotiable priority in U.S. policy. 

Population Estimates (2026)

Estimates of this group vary based on how strictly the "Israel-first" or Zionist ideology is defined:

• Broad Adherents: Recent academic estimates suggest there are more than 30 million Christian Zionists in the United States. Some research papers place the broader range of Americans with these foundational beliefs as high as 20 to 50 million.
• Formal Membership: Christians United for Israel (CUFI), the largest pro-Israel organization in the U.S., reports a membership of over 11 million as of 2026.
• Committed Activists: Analysts suggest that while tens of millions hold these beliefs, only a few million are "fully signed up" to the intensive political, military, and religious activism associated with the movement. 

Demographic & Belief Breakdown

• Primary Base: The majority of these believers are found in evangelical and fundamentalist churches, particularly in the "Bible Belt" (southeast and south-central U.S.).
• Theological Foundation: Most of these adherents believe in dispensationalism—the idea that the return of Jewish people to their ancestral homeland is a prerequisite for biblical end-times prophecies and the second coming of Christ.
• Biblical Conviction: As of late 2025, approximately 70% of White evangelicals believe that God gave the land of Israel to the Jewish people, a conviction that often translates into "Israel-first" political stances.
• Comparison to Jewish Population: There are significantly more Christian Zionists in the U.S. than there are Jewish people. Estimates for the American Jewish population in 2026 hover around 7.5 to 7.6 million. 

Current Support Trends

While the core "Israel-first" constituency remains a formidable voting bloc, especially among older Republicans, overall U.S. public support for Israel has seen a decline in early 2026. 

• Approval Rating: Only 32% of Americans approved of Israel's ongoing military actions as of late 2025.
• Generational Shift: Support remains high among older groups (77% among those over 65), but has dropped significantly among younger cohorts, where only 40% of Republicans under 44 sympathize more with Israelis than Palestinians.