Nearly two months after Israelis voted for the 25th Knesset, a new poll shows the right-wing bloc maintaining its lead over the center-left – Arab bloc.
The poll, conducted by Panels Politics, was published by Ma’ariv Friday morning, after Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu notified President Isaac Herzog that he has secured a majority in the Knesset for a new government.
If new elections were held today, the poll found, the pro-Netanyahu bloc would retain the 64 seats it won in November, with the center-left –Arab bloc again receiving 56 seats.
The Likud rose in the poll to 35 seats, up from 32 seats in last month’s election.
Yesh Atid also gained ground, rising from 24 seats to 26, while the National Unity list tumbled from 12 to 10 seats. Labor held steady at four seats, and Meretz, which failed to cross the 3.25% electoral threshold last month, would barely enter the Knesset with 4 seats.
Yisrael Beytenu, which currently has six seats, barely crossed the threshold in the poll, receiving just four seats.
Among the Arab factions, the predominantly Bedouin United Arab List fell from its current five seats to four mandates, while the Hadash-Ta’al alliance failed to cross the threshold, falling from five seats to zero.
By contrast, the Arab nationalist Balad faction, which failed to win representation in the 25th Knesset, narrowly passed the threshold in Friday’s poll with four seats.
Shas fell in the poll from 11 seats currently to nine mandates, while United Torah Judaism rose from seven seats to eight.
The Religious Zionist Party alliance with Otzma Yehudit and Noam, which received a total of 14 seats last month, slipped to 12 in the poll.