לפי תפיסתם, לגיטימי שיפסלו בחירה דמוקרטית של רוב העם. שופטי בית המשפט העליון
לפי תפיסתם, לגיטימי שיפסלו בחירה דמוקרטית של רוב העם. שופטי בית המשפט העליוןצילום: יונתן זינדל, פלאש 90

Yohanan Plesner, President of the Israel Democracy Institute and Prof. Tamar Herman, Director of the Viterbi Center for Public Opinion and Policy Research, presented the State of Israel Democracy Index for 2020 today (Monday) to President Reuven Rivlin.

The Democracy Index project was conducted for the 18th consecutive year. It paints a complex picture of the public's assessment of the resilience of Israeli democracy, the degree of trust in state institutions and appreciation of public service officials.

The study shows that the Corona crisis has adversely affected relations between haredi and non-haredi Israelis, Jews and Arabs, private citizens and elected officials, as well as police and local residents.

The data collected also indicates a weakening in the public's trust in society's social fabric. In October, just 17% of Israelis said they thought there was a high level of social solidarity in the country - the lowest in over a decade. Last June marked a decrease in the half-year highs of all previous years (33%) since the inception of the State of Israel.

While last year half of Israel's public said they thought the country was doing well or very well, that number fell to 37% by June and 32% by October.

At the same time, about two-thirds of Israelis (64%) still considered Israel a good place to live in the month of October (compared to 76% in the June of last year).

Most Israelis (61%) defined their personal situation as good or very good in June, but this number, too, saw a dramatic slide compared to the corresponding rate two years ago, which stood at 80%.

In October, 57% of the public said they believed Israeli democracy was in grave danger, with the number at 53% last June - also a fall off from previous years.

A majority of Jewish respondents (60%) said Israel offered equal rights to its Arab citizens, while a majority of their Arabs counterparts (58%) thought the Jewish state did not afford them the same democratic rights.

State institutions maintained similar numbers in the national public trust rating, with data also indicating a felt decrease in public trust in most institutions compared to previous years. Some institutions saw additional decline in public confidence between June and October of 2020.

Among the state's Jewish population, the IDF led the list of most trusted institutions, but here, too, a significant decline was registered, from 90% who said they trusted the army last year to 81% in October of 2020 - the lowest digit since 2008.

As was the case in previous years, the State president earned the highest trust rating after the IDF, but his confidence level amongst the Jewish public also dropped from 71% last year to 63% in June of 2020 and 56% in October.

Public trust in the Supreme Court saw a sharp decline from 52% in June to 42% in October, with state police (41%) and national media (32%) following behind. Closing the list was the government at 25%, the Knesset, falling to 21% in October from 32% in June - and the nation's political parties - from 17% in June to 14% in October.

Within the Arab sector, public trust in national institutions was lower than amongst Jewish residents, dropping significantly compared to previous years. The Supreme Court, which saw a confidence level of 60% in June dropped to 40% in October. Confidence in the State's political parties was also severely damaged, after rising to 30% in June (compared with 20% last year), crashing to 14% in October.

The index also indicates that 84.5% of the Jewish population feel a connection to the State of Israel and the issues it faces, compared to only 44% in the Arab sector.

As in previous years, the majority of the Israelis (58%) said the country's leadership was corrupt. Among the Jewish population, this perception was much stronger on the left of the political isle (87.5%) and in the center (74%), than on the right (43%).

Supreme Court judges responded to the results of the poll: "This follows a worldwide trend of eroding public trust in democratic institutions that has been felt in the State of Israel. For example, according to studies conducted in the United States, the US Supreme Court enjoys just 38% of public confidence. The judiciary does not take lightly the erosion of the public's trust in state institutions in general, and the Supreme Court in particular."

"However, a clear distinction must be made between striving to strengthen and maintaining public trust in the judiciary, and the desire to please and arouse public sympathy. Public trust in the judiciary is conditioned first and foremost on being an independent, professional and apolitical system. It is the 'genetic makeup' of the judiciary and is necessary to ensure that the public accepts and upholds the decisions of the Court - which are neither difficult nor unpopular - even if they do not represent the public's views," they added.