Ben Ray Luján

In April 2024, Luján voted for H.R. 815, the national security supplemental that included security assistance for Israel, funding to replenish defense articles provided to Israel, and support for Iron Dome, David's Sling, and Iron Beam. The Senate passed the measure 79-18, and it became Public Law 118-50. Luján said the package demonstrated that the United States would support allies including Israel while also providing humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza.

In November 2023, Luján joined Senators Chris Van Hollen and Jeff Merkley in describing themselves as strong supporters of the U.S.-Israel relationship while urging the Biden administration to press Israel to prevent extremist settler violence in the West Bank. The letter condemned Hamas's October 7 attack and paired support for the bilateral relationship with calls for civilian protection and accountability.

In April 2026, Luján voted for motions to discharge S.J. Res. 32 and S.J. Res. 138 from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The resolutions would have blocked proposed

sales of bulldozers and 1,000-pound bombs to Israel; both discharge motions failed, 40- 59 and 36-63. Luján said additional weapons would deepen regional conflict and argued that the United States should use its leverage to demand changes from the Netanyahu government while pursuing humanitarian relief and security for Israelis and Palestinians.

In April 2021, Luján joined Senate colleagues urging President Biden to return to the Iran nuclear agreement through a 'compliance for compliance' approach. The senators argued that the JCPOA had constrained Iran's nuclear-weapons capability and that rejoining the agreement should be an early national-security priority, while separately addressing Iran's support for militant groups, ballistic missiles, cyberattacks, and hostage-taking.

In June 2025, Luján stated that Iran should never have a nuclear weapon, while arguing that the United States needed strategy, alliances, and congressional oversight rather than unilateral escalation. After U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities later that month, and again after U.S. strikes in February 2026, he opposed unauthorized military action and warned against a prolonged war with Iran.

Luján cosponsored S. Res. 417, a bipartisan Senate resolution standing with Israel against terrorism after October 7. The resolution reaffirmed Israel's right to self-defense, supported emergency assistance to Israel, called for international condemnation of Hamas, and urged efforts to deprive Hamas of Iranian and other sources of funding and lethal assistance. The Senate agreed to the resolution 97-0 on October 19, 2023. In February 2024, Luján joined colleagues supporting diplomacy to free hostages and restore a ceasefire while stating that Hamas is a brutal terrorist organization and that removing it from power in Gaza is in Israel's vital national interest. The senators said they continued to support Israel's pursuit of that objective while also calling for protection of civilians.

In November 2023, Luján described October 7 as a horrific attack and said it demonstrated that Hamas must be removed from power. He supported the Biden administration's

efforts to secure the release of hostages and said a lasting peace should ultimately include a two-state solution.

In February 2024, Luján joined a Senate letter supporting continued U.S.-led diplomacy to free Americans and Israelis held by Hamas. The letter called October 7 a massacre, supported the removal of Hamas from power, and paired hostage-release efforts with a restored ceasefire and humanitarian relief for civilians in Gaza.

In December 2025, Luján joined Senators Martin Heinrich and Jacky Rosen in pressing Meta over what they described as a dramatic increase in antisemitic content on its social-media platforms and AI models. The senators warned that platforming antisemitic speech can normalize hatred and contribute to real-world violence, and asked Meta to explain its policies for detecting and removing anti-Jewish content.

In 2021, Luján introduced the Protecting Americans from Dangerous Algorithms Act, which sought to create liability when online platforms knowingly or recklessly used algorithms to recommend content that materially contributed to certain physical or severe emotional injuries. His office framed the legislation as a response to algorithmic amplification of extremist and hateful material; the bill was supported by organizations including the Anti- Defamation League and American Jewish Committee.

In March 2026, Luján joined a letter urging the Department of Education to restore the capacity and impartiality of its Office for Civil Rights in schools and institutions of higher education. The senators specifically noted that OCR had not reached a single resolution agreement in a case alleging antisemitism or other shared-ancestry discrimination since January 2025 and argued that the federal government must investigate discrimination complaints without political bias. The letter addressed student civil-rights enforcement broadly rather than proposing a Jewish-student-specific campus policy.

Luján's April 2024 vote for H.R. 815 supported $400 million in supplemental funding for FEMA's Nonprofit Security Grant Program, including administrative funding and grants for eligible nonprofits to prepare for and protect against terrorism and other threats. The program is available to at-risk nonprofit organizations and houses of worship generally and is not limited to Jewish institutions.

Luján's 2021 Protecting Americans from Dangerous Algorithms Act targeted online recommendation systems that amplify extremist and harmful content. His office cited concerns that engagement-driven algorithms can elevate hate, harassment, violence, conspiracy theories, and other extremist material.

H.R. 815, which Luján voted for in April 2024, included a temporary prohibition on U.S. funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency and became Public Law 118- 50. Because this was one provision within a large national-security package, the vote establishes support for the overall legislation but does not by itself show that UNRWA policy was a central reason for Luján's vote.

Luján has a documented history of engagement with New Mexico's Jewish community. Jewish Insider reported in 2020 that local Jewish leaders described him as accessible and responsive and said he regularly attended annual Hanukkah celebrations at Santa Fe Plaza. Earlier, as a member of the House, he participated in the 2014 groundbreaking for Chabad of Santa Fe's expanded Jewish center and described it as a welcoming place that would strengthen the community.