John Kennedy

John Kennedy was born in 1951 and is currently serving as the junior United States Senator from Louisiana. Senator Kennedy’s seat will be up for election in 2028.

John Kennedy was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2016. Prior to joining the Senate, Kennedy served as the State Treasurer of Louisiana from 2000 until 2017. He was first elected as a Democrat, but he switched parties from Democrat to Republican in 2007.

Senator Kennedy is currently serving on the Appropriations Committee; the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee; the Budget Committee; the Judiciary Committee; and the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

Below is Senator Kennedy’s voting record and public positions on issues important to the Jewish community.

Senator Kennedy supported the Taylor Force Act, which states that no American governmental funds shall be given to a Palestinian entity that financially rewards terrorists or their families. He cosponsored legislation objecting the UN Security Council Resolution 2334, which claimed that Israel’s settlements have no legal validity. Senator Kennedy cosponsored the Israel Anti-Boycott Act and the Combating BDS Act of 2017, two bills that aimed to fight discriminatory boycotts that target Israel.

Senator Kennedy cosponsored the United States-Israel Security Assistance Authorization Act, a legislation that supported full funding of security assistance to Israel as outlined in the 2016 U.S.-Israel Memorandum of Understanding.

In 2019, he voted for the Strengthening America’s Middle East Security Act which, among other things, strengthened Israel’s security and allowed a state or local government to adopt measures to divest its assets from entities that boycott Israel. He has cosponsored a resolution that opposes efforts to delegitimize the State of Israel and the global Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement that targets Israel.