Likud Leads Polls Ahead of Israeli Elections, Ofer Winter's Party Slips

A new i24NEWS poll conducted by Direct Polls shows the Likud party maintaining its lead with 27 seats, just days after the deadline for submitting candidate lists for the 2026 Israeli elections. The ruling party, led by Benjamin Netanyahu, appears stable despite recent internal party disputes regarding candidate placements. Gadi Eisenkot's Yashar! party remains in second place but loses one seat, now projected to win 22 mandates. Naftali Bennett's Beyahad party gains a seat, reaching 10 seats, while The Democrats hold steady with nine. On the right, Itamar Ben Gvir's Otzma Yehudit gains one seat for a total of eight, tied with United Torah Judaism, which remains unchanged. Israel Beiteinou, Shas, and the Joint List are each projected to secure seven seats. The Religious Zionist Party and Zehut alliance holds six seats, and Ra'am receives five. Notably, Ofer Winter's new party, Amkha Israel, drops one seat to four, just meeting the minimum threshold for Knesset representation. Several other parties, including The Reservists, Economic Party, and Blue-White, fall below the electoral threshold. The poll indicates no change in the balance between political blocs, with coalition parties collectively holding 60 seats, the opposition 48, and Arab parties 12. Neither major bloc has the 61 seats required to form a majority government. The survey was conducted on September 9 among 1,054 Israelis aged 18 and over, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3% and a 95% confidence level.