Gadi Eizenkot's Yisrael Im Leads as Third Bloc Collapses in New Israel Poll

A new poll by Channel 12 published on August 17, 2026, shows that if elections were held today, the party Yisrael Im, led by Gadi Eizenkot, would be the largest with 24 seats, maintaining its strength from the previous poll. The Likud party, led by Benjamin Netanyahu, ranks second with 22 seats following its recent primaries. Other parties passing the electoral threshold include Yachdut with 15 seats, the Democratic Camp with 11, Yisrael Beiteinu with 10, Otzma Yehudit and United Torah Judaism each with 8, Shas with 7, and several smaller parties with 5 seats each. The third bloc parties remain below the threshold and outside the Knesset.

The opposition bloc against Netanyahu holds 70 seats, combining 60 from Zionist opposition parties and 10 from Arab parties, while the coalition parties have 50 seats. A hypothetical scenario introducing retired Brigadier General Ofer Winter as a party leader shows his party failing to cross the threshold, causing the Religious Zionism party led by Bezalel Smotrich to fall below the threshold as well. This scenario would increase the opposition bloc to 73 seats and reduce the coalition to 47.

Another scenario considers Hili Tropper joining Eizenkot's Yisrael Im after his own party decides not to run. This would strengthen Yisrael Im to 25 seats, with minimal changes to other parties and the bloc balance remaining the same. Regarding prime ministerial suitability, Eizenkot leads Netanyahu 38% to 34%, while Netanyahu leads Naftali Bennett 35% to 34%, and also leads Avigdor Lieberman 35% to 24%.

The poll also reveals that 52% of the public say the party list composition influences their voting intentions, with higher impact among opposition and third bloc voters. A majority of 55% of opposition voters believe the largest party leader should be the bloc's prime minister candidate. The survey was conducted by Meno Geva's consulting firm on August 17, 2026, with a representative sample of 501 respondents and a margin of error of 4.4%.