Gadi Eizenkot Leads with 23 Seats, Likud Close Behind in Latest Maariv Poll

A recent Maariv poll published on August 7, 2026, shows a stable political landscape in Israel with Gadi Eizenkot's party "Yashar!" maintaining its lead at 23 Knesset seats for the third consecutive week. The Likud party, led by Benjamin Netanyahu, follows closely with 22 seats, unchanged from the previous poll. Naftali Bennett's "Beyachad" holds 15 seats, Avigdor Lieberman's "Yisrael Beiteinu" has 10, and Yair Golan's "The Democrats" secured 9 seats, all consistent with prior results.

Among the religious and right-wing parties, Otzma Yehudit, headed by Itamar Ben-Gvir, gained one seat to reach 8, while Bezalel Smotrich's Religious Zionism party dropped to 4 seats. The overall balance between political blocs remains steady, with the coalition holding 49 seats against 57 for the Zionist opposition, which could potentially form a majority with the support of Yoaz Hendel's "Zionist Home - Reservists" party holding 4 seats. Arab parties collectively maintain 10 seats, with no immediate impact from Yoav Segalovich's possible move to Mansour Abbas's Ra'am party.

Regarding the contentious issue of including Ra'am in a future coalition, 55% of Israelis oppose the move, 20% support it, and 25% are undecided. Among coalition supporters, opposition is strong at 84%, while Zionist opposition voters are divided, with 36% in favor and 35% against. Arab party voters largely support Ra'am's inclusion at 62%. On the Gaza peace roadmap, 54% of Israelis oppose the plan, including 72% of coalition voters, while 24% support it. Arab party supporters mostly back the plan at 58%.

In leadership preference, Naftali Bennett leads Netanyahu with 43% to 40% for prime minister suitability, while Eizenkot leads Netanyahu 47% to 38%. Netanyahu maintains a lead over Lieberman with 42% to 38%. These figures remain consistent with previous polls, indicating little change in voter sentiment ahead of the upcoming elections.