A new Channel 14 poll released Tuesday night shows a dramatic shift in Israel’s political landscape, with the right-wing bloc climbing to a solid 63-seat majority while the parties led by Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid suffer major losses.
The survey, published immediately following the Likud primaries, gives Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud 32 seats, keeping it comfortably in first place despite slipping by one seat from the previous poll. The opposition bloc falls by two seats to 46, while the Arab parties collectively receive 11 seats.
Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party finishes a strong second with 24 seats, gaining one seat from last week. Shas follows with 10 seats, while the Democrats receive nine.
Otzma Yehudit records one of the more significant gains in the poll, rising by two seats to eight. Yisrael Beytenu falls to seven seats, while United Torah Judaism also receives seven. Religious Zionism remains unchanged from the previous week with six seats.
Bennett’s Beyachad party suffers a particularly steep decline, falling to just six seats and moving considerably closer to the electoral threshold.
Among the Arab parties, Ra’am receives six seats, an increase of one from last week, while Hadash-Ta’al wins five.
Several parties fail to cross the electoral threshold. Balad polls at 2.1%, Zionist Home Reservists at 1.2%, Zehut at 1.1%, Ofer Winter at 0.9%, Blue and White at 0.4%, and a potential party led by Gilad Erdan receives just 0.1%.
The poll paints an even more decisive picture when respondents were asked which political leader is best suited to serve as prime minister.
Netanyahu leads the field by a wide margin with 55% support. Eisenkot finishes a distant second with 35%, while Bennett receives just 6%, Avigdor Liberman 3%, and Benny Gantz 1%.
In a direct head-to-head question between Netanyahu and Eisenkot, Netanyahu maintains a clear advantage, with 55% saying they prefer him as prime minister compared to 45% who choose Eisenkot.
{Matzav.com}
