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Most Israelis unhappy with the state of democracy

Some 44% said there was a change for the worse over the past several years.

Central Election Committee workers count ballots at the Knesset in Jerusalem, two days after the general election, Nov. 3, 2022. Photo by Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90.
Central Election Committee workers count ballots at the Knesset in Jerusalem, two days after the general election, Nov. 3, 2022. Photo by Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90.

More than half of Israelis are dissatisfied with how democracy works in their country.

The results from the Central Bureau of Statistics’ 2022 Social Survey on the Perception of Democracy and Civic Engagement were published on Monday as Israel undergoes its worst political crisis in years over the planned judicial reforms.

Some 56% of Israelis polled were dissatisfied with the state of democracy in Israel, compared to 40% who were satisfied, the survey found.

Jews expressed satisfaction with the country’s democracy at a higher rate than Arabs citizens, 42% to 30% respectively, while there was no difference in gender.

Forty-four percent of respondents said they felt that there was a change for the worse in the state of democracy over the last several years, compared to 42% who felt there was no change. Only 6% said that the state of democracy had improved.

More than one in four said that they did not feel free to express their opinion of the government.

The survey, which did not cite a margin of error, polled 6,501 Israelis over the age of 20.

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