Netanyahu and Eisenkot Tie in New Israeli Election Poll as Bennett Weakens

A recent Channel 13 poll reveals a tight race at the top of Israel's political landscape, with Benjamin Netanyahu and Benny Gantz Eisenkot each projected to win 23 Knesset seats if elections were held today. Both leaders have gained two seats compared to last week's poll. Naftali Bennett continues to lose support, dropping to 13 seats for the first time. Avigdor Lieberman's Yisrael Beiteinu holds 10 seats, while the Democrats and United Torah Judaism each fall to 9 seats. Itamar Ben Gvir's Otzma Yehudit receives 8 seats, Shas 7, Mansour Abbas's Ra'am and the new Zionist Home party led by Hendel and Trooper each gain 5 seats. Hadash-Ta'al stands at 4 seats, and the Religious Zionist Party loses one seat, also at 4. Blue and White and Balad fall below the electoral threshold.

The opposition bloc leads with 55 seats, the coalition holds 51, Arab parties have 9 seats, and the "Zionist Home" party has 5 seats. Among respondents, 49% are certain they will vote for the opposition bloc, 35% for the coalition, 10% are undecided, and 6% plan to vote across blocs. In hypothetical matchups for prime minister, Eisenkot leads Netanyahu 47% to 36%, while Bennett leads Netanyahu 45% to 40%.

Regarding Netanyahu's recent trip to the United States, 43% of Israelis believe the visit was primarily motivated by election considerations, 36% cite political-security reasons, and 14% mention the funeral of Senator Lindsey Graham. When asked if the visit changed Israel's prospects regarding Iran, 55% say it made no difference, 28% see a positive change, and 4% perceive a negative impact.

The poll was conducted by HaMidmad (Shmuel Rosner, Nech Salpakov) in cooperation with Stat-Net (Yosef Makleda), Midgam Project (Dr. Ariel Eyalon), and Askaria (Dudi Dror), with statistical advice from Prof. David Steinberg. It surveyed 956 respondents with a margin of error of 3.5%.