Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition of right-wing and religious parties would retain a majority in the Knesset if elections were to be held today, according to a poll published by Channel 14 on Wednesday.
The survey by Direct Polls, which accurately forecasted the Jewish state’s most recent election in November 2022, was carried out after Netanyahu announced the dismissal of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Tuesday.
If a vote were to be called now, Netanyahu’s ruling Likud Party would secure 33 mandates out of the Israeli parliament’s 120, similar to the previous Direct Polls survey published on Oct. 27 and one more than it has held in the Knesset since the general election on Nov. 1, 2022.
Benny Gantz’s National Unity Party came in at second place in the poll at 16 seats, followed by Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu Party (14), the Shas Party and the Democrats (10 each), Yesh Atid and United Torah Judaism (eight each), the Otzma Yehudit Party (six), Religious Zionism Party and the Arab Ra’am and Hadash-Ta’al factions (five each).
The disparity between Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc and the center-left bloc stands at 62 to 49 seats, with 10 seats polling for the Arab parties.
Just under half of those surveyed (45%) said they supported the decision to fire Gallant, according to Direct Polls. Among those who voted for coalition parties two years ago, 80% said they backed the move.
Asked by Direct Polls who was best suited to serve as the Jewish state’s prime minister, 47% said they felt Netanyahu was the right man for the job, while 27% cited Gantz and 26% said neither man was suitable.
When choosing between Netanyahu and Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid, 48% said Netanyahu was best suited to lead, 27% said Lapid and 25% said both were unsuitable.
The Likud Party has held 32 seats in the Knesset since the 2022 election, in addition to the 32 seats held by the prime minister’s right-wing and religious allies. The next national vote is scheduled for 2026 unless the Netanyahu-led government collapses and early elections are called.
