Naftali Bennett
Naftali BennettPhoto by Oren Ben Hakoon/POOL

A new poll conducted for News 12's "Meet the Press" program investigated whether Yesh Atid's MK Ofer Shelah would increase support for the party if he chaired it, and what the public thinks about Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's management of the coronavirus crisis.

The poll showed that if elections were held today, Netanyahu's Likud party would receive 31 Knesset seats, while MK Naftali Bennett's Yamina would receive 19 seats. Yesh Atid-Telem, led by MK Yair Lapid, would receive 15 Knesset seats, as would the Joint Arab List.

Defense Minister Benny Gantz's Blue and White party would win 11 Knesset seats, while Yisrael Beytenu and the Sephardic-haredi Shas would each receive eight seats. Ashkenazic-haredi United Torah Judaism would receive seven Knesset seats, with left-wing Meretz bringing up the rear with just six.

Among those parties failing to pass the electoral threshold are Labor with 1.9% of the vote, Derech Eretz with 0.7%, and Rabbi Rafi Peretz's Jewish Home with 0.6% of the vote. The Gesher party, led by MK Orly Levi-Abekasis, would receive 0.0% of the vote.

Divided into blocs, the right-wing bloc would receive 50 Knesset seats, while the haredim would receive 15, the center-left 32, the Arabs 15, and Yisrael Beytenu eight.

If Shelah were to lead Yesh Atid, the Likud would receive 31 Knesset seats, followed by Yamina with 19, the Joint Arab List with 15, and Yesh Atid-Telem with 13. Blue and White would receive 11 seats, while Yisrael Beytenu would receive nine and Shas eight. UTJ and Meretz would receive seven seats each.

When asked who the most appropriate candidate for prime minister is, Netanyahu received 37% of the vote, while Bennett received 28%. Thirty percent of respondents said neither candidate was appropriate, while 5% said they did not know.

When asked for their opinion on how the government is handling the coronavirus crisis, 4% of Israelis said "very well," while 28% "pretty well." Thirty-one percent gave the government a score of "pretty poorly," and 34% said "very poorly. Another 3% said they were not sure.

Regarding how Netanyahu has handled the outbreak, 7% said "very well," and 30% said "pretty well." Another 29% said "pretty poorly," while 32% said "very poorly," and 2% did not know.

When asked how Netanyahu had handled the outbreak with regards to the economy, 8% said "very well," and 26% said "pretty well." Another 23% said "pretty poorly," and 40% said "very poorly."

The poll was conducted by Midgam, led by Meno Geva. It included a representative sample of 511 Israelis ages 18 and above, and has an error margin of 4.4%.