Poll mirrors Netanyahu's Likud party free fall

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Israeli media
30 Dec 2023 12:14
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In divided "Israel", cracks continue to open up with the Likud party plummeting to its worst performance, as per an opinion poll.

Israeli occupation’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at a press conference in Berlin on March 16, 2023. (AFP)

An opinion poll released on Thursday by Israeli Channel 13 indicated a significant decline for the Likud party, projecting it to win only 16 seats in the current Knesset, down from its current 32 seats out of 120.

The survey suggested that the Blue and White party, led by Israeli war cabinet Minister Benny Gantz, would become the largest party in the Knesset with 38 seats, a notable increase from its current 12 seats.

Yesh Atid, led by Yair Lapid, has also experienced a decrease in popularity, with its parliamentary strength projected to decline from 24 MPs to 15 MPs, making it the third-largest party in the Knesset if elections were held today.

Recent polls have consistently indicated a decrease in Likud's popularity in the past few months.

“Likud's collapse has been ongoing since the outbreak of the war. If elections were held today, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's party would win only 16 seats, just one more than Yair Lapid's party", Israeli Channel 13 noted.

The Israeli channel also highlighted that in the event of immediate elections, the coalition, comprising Likud, Shas, United Torah Judaism, Jewish Power, and Religious Zionism, would only garner 45 seats, a notable decline from the current 64. It is worth noting that forming a government in "Israel" necessitates the support of at least 61 members of the Knesset.

Conversely, the poll suggested that opposition parties could secure 71 seats, with the Democratic Front for Peace and the Arab List for Change alliance obtaining four seats. Furthermore, the survey indicated that if former Mossad Chief Yossi Cohen were to replace Netanyahu as the Likud leader, the party would secure 23 seats, compared to 33 for the Blue and White party.

The channel noted that the poll, overseen by Israeli polling expert Camil Fuchs, involved a random sample of 700 Israelis, with a margin of error of 3.7%. Presently, there are no signs of parliamentary elections amid the ongoing aggression on Gaza. Nevertheless, Israeli assessments hint at the potential for "Israel" to go to the polls again after the end of the ongoing war.

'Israel lost the war against Hamas'

This comes shortly after Netanyahu canceled a "day after war" meeting for the Israeli war cabinet regarding the Gaza Strip despite having called for it initially due to pressure from coalition partners.

Less than a week ago, Netanyahu was booed in Knesset for mishandling the issue of Israeli captives in Gaza. During the Knesset address of the Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, relatives of Israeli captives held in Gaza vehemently expressed their frustration at the Israeli leader heckling him during the speech on December 25.

While Netanyahu had pledged to secure the release of the captives, he indicated that more time was necessary.

The captives' families interrupted his speech with chants of "Now! Now!" when the Prime Minister mentioned the need for additional time to increase pressure on Hamas.

On December 26, former Chief of General Staff of the Israeli occupation army, Dan Halutz, said that "Israel" lost the war against Hamas.

Israeli Channel 14's correspondent, Yishai Friedman, released a recording of his conversation with Halutz in Haifa with anti-government protest activists, which took place during the war. In the conversation, Halutz stated, "There will be no image of victory ...."

Meanwhile, the Israeli genocide against Palestinians is ongoing, killing more than 21,500 martyrs, more than half of them women and children, with 55,915 individuals sustaining injuries, as per Gaza's Ministry of Health.