Polls Show Likud Still First, Eisenkot Surges as Bennett Slips

New polls released Wednesday by Kan 11 and Channel 13 show Likud remaining Israel’s largest party, while Gadi Eisenkot posts a sharp rise and Naftali Bennett weakens. In both surveys, the current coalition bloc reaches only 53 seats, leaving it well short of a majority.

According to the Kan 11 poll, Likud gains one seat from last week to 24. Eisenkot’s party, "Yashar!", rises to 22 seats, while Bennett’s "Beyachad" drops to 16. The rest of the Kan 11 map gives Yisrael Beiteinu 10, the Democrats 9, Otzma Yehudit 9, Shas 8, United Torah Judaism 7, Hadash-Ta’al 6, Religious Zionism 5, and Ra’am 4. The parties below the electoral threshold are the Reservists party, Blue and White, and Balad.

Kan 11 also tested breakup and merger scenarios. If Bennett and Yair Lapid split, Bennett gets 14 seats and Lapid falls to 4. If Benny Gantz merges with Yoaz Hendel and Dedi Simhi, the united list would win 7 seats, but still would not decide either bloc. Under the current poll, the coalition bloc edges up to 53 seats, one more than a week earlier.

Channel 13 also has Likud leading with 23 seats, followed by Eisenkot’s list with 20 and Bennett-Lapid’s joint list with 15. That poll gives Yisrael Beiteinu 12, the Democrats 10, Otzma Yehudit 9, Shas 8, United Torah Judaism 8, Hadash-Ta’al 6, Religious Zionism 5, and Ra’am 4, with Blue and White, Balad, and the Reservists party below the threshold. In the standard bloc breakdown, the coalition gets 53 seats, the opposition led by Eisenkot 57, and the Arab parties 10.

Channel 13 also found that a broad alliance under Eisenkot could jump to 37 seats, lifting the opposition to 58 and trimming the coalition to 52. A merger of Arab parties would leave the coalition at 50, the opposition at 58, and the Arab bloc at 12. In direct leadership matchups, Eisenkot leads Netanyahu 43 percent to 39 percent, Netanyahu leads Bennett 44 percent to 41 percent, and Eisenkot leads Bennett 42 percent to 21 percent.