Israeli Elections
As Israelis go to the voting booths on April 9, JNS will offer ongoing coverage on a host of issues, including parliamentary politics and the geopolitical challenges Israel faces with live reports from Likud and Blue and White headquarters.
Blue and White leader Benny Gantz hinted that he would seek major economic investment in Gaza’s civilian economy and infrastructure to stabilize the enclave, and respond to security challenges with far greater force than Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has.
Voting has begun for Israeli military personnel, with 643 ballot boxes set up for Israel Defense Forces soldiers’ across the country, available 72 hours before national polls open on April 9.
In an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 TV news, the Israeli premier said he would not dismantle a single Jewish settlement, and that he would annex parts of Judea and Samaria if he is re-elected on April 9.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is putting out a distress call: “If Likud voters don’t wake up, we’ll lose the election” • Targeting Blue and White leader Benny Gantz, he asks, “If this has been the hardest month of his life, how can he handle being prime minister?”
The right-wing bloc is projected to win 64 seats, compared to 56 for the center-left.
Sparks fly over pertinent political issues and candidates at “The Jerusalem Post” 2019 Elections Conference, held at the InterContinental David Tel Aviv hotel.
He seems worried, even stressed—a description he prefers for his enemies. One night last week, the Israeli prime minister was sitting with his campaign advisers, including expert pollsters, and after an in-depth review of the polls, they concluded that the problem on the right was insouciance.
When asked how he felt in the face of constant attacks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “If I cared what people thought about me, I would have not been sitting here. A person cannot survive in politics, in business or in journalism if you are a slave to what people think about you.”
“I thought it was an April Fool’s joke, but it’s not,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “They say I don’t have support from real people, just from robots. They can’t accept that you, citizens of Israel, support me.”
U.S. special envoy for international negotiations Jason Greenblatt said it is “cynical” to label U.S. recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights as a move to boost Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s re-election chances before the April 9 elections.
Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz, who is regarded as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s main rival in the upcoming April 9 elections, said “Netanyahu has forsaken our security, and now Israelis once again have to live with sirens.”
