New polling released Thursday night indicates shifting dynamics within Israel’s political landscape, with Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu widening his lead, Naftali Bennett losing ground, and Gadi Eisenkot gaining traction. At the same time, a separate survey presents a sharply different picture of the political map. Despite the shifting numbers, most of the public reports satisfaction with the progress of the war, particularly among those with immediate access to protected spaces.

A Channel 12 News poll published Thursday points to movement within the various political blocs, though the overall balance between them remains unchanged. The data shows Likud gaining two seats, Bennett’s party dropping by one, and Eisenkot picking up an additional mandate.

According to the survey, Likud stands at 28 seats, while Bennett’s party holds 20. The Democrats, led by Yair Golan, receive 12 seats, and Yisrael Beiteinu, under Avigdor Lieberman, comes in with 9. Shas and United Torah Judaism register 9 and 7 seats respectively, while Otzma Yehudit, led by Itamar Ben Gvir, holds 7. Yesh Atid, under Yair Lapid, is at 6, and both Hadash-Ta’al and Ra’am receive 5 seats each.

Several parties fall below the electoral threshold, including Religious Zionism led by Bezalel Smotrich with 2.3%, Blue and White under Benny Gantz with 1.7%, the Reservists party led by Yoaz Hendel with 1.7%, and Balad under Sami Abu Shehadeh with 0.7%.

While the bloc breakdown remains stable, the personal leadership question shows a notable shift. Netanyahu has opened his widest lead in two years over Bennett in terms of suitability for prime minister. In addition, Bennett is no longer the leading opposition candidate for the role, with Eisenkot now taking that position.

The poll also found that a large majority of Israelis are satisfied with the country’s performance in the war. Another finding highlights a connection between personal security and satisfaction levels. Political analyst Amit Segal summarized this relationship, saying, “As the shelter gets closer to the bedroom, the level of satisfaction with the war increases.” The implication, he noted, is not particularly surprising.

A separate Channel 14 News poll, conducted by Shlomo Filber among 754 respondents, presents a dramatically different political outlook. According to that survey, the right-wing bloc commands 66 seats, compared to 42 for the left and 12 for Arab parties.

In that poll’s seat distribution, Likud receives 36 mandates, the Joint List 12, Eisenkot’s “Yashar” party 11, Shas and Bennett’s party 10 each, the Democrats and United Torah Judaism 9 each, Yisrael Beiteinu 8, and Otzma Yehudit 7. Yesh Atid and Religious Zionism each receive 4 seats, while Blue and White fails to cross the electoral threshold.

On the question of suitability for prime minister in the Channel 14 survey, Netanyahu leads by a wide margin with 58%, followed by Eisenkot at 17% and Bennett at 16%. Lieberman and Lapid each receive 4%, while Benny Gantz registers 1%.

{Matzav.com}