Few Israelis believe government will last full term - poll

• Published date: 12 April 2024
• Author: JERUSALEM POST STAFF
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

Right-wing Jewish respondents were the most likely to predict a full term for the current government, which is set to govern until 2026, and even among that cohort this view was a minority, represented by 44% of respondents. Among Jews in the center, 24% expect the government to last, and among left-wing Jews, only 19%

Broken down by party, the most optimistic by far about the government's ability to survive a full term were voters from the Sephardic ultra-Orthodox Shas party, 71% of whom said there was a high likelihood the government would last through 2026. Among Likud voters, 51% predicted the government would last, and among all other parties it was only a minority.

Optimism further declines about the future of democracy, security in Israel

The poll also showed declining optimism about the future of both democracy and security in Israel, and found a lack of conviction among broad swathes of the country that Israel's leadership is doing all it can to secure the release of hostages held captive by Hamas in Gaza.

Only 37% of Jews and 24% of Arabs said they were optimistic about the future of democratic rule in Israel. Only 38% of Jews and 17% of Arabs said they were optimistic about the country's future national security.

On both counts, Jews were more optimistic the further right they were on the political spectrum, with half of right-wing Israelis expressing optimism about the future of Israeli democracy, and 44% expressing optimism about national security, compared to left-wing Jews, only 13% of whom were optimistic about democracy and 20% about national security.

Asked whether they believe that the government is doing all it can to secure the release of the hostages in Gaza, 66% of right-wing Jews said they believe that the government is, but only 29% of Jews in the center and 23% of Jews in the left did, while only 30% of Arabs said they believed the government was doing its utmost to bring the hostages home.

Interestingly, Jewish men were more likely than Jewish women to believe the government is doing its utmost to secure the release of the hostages, whereas Arab women were more likely to hold the same view than Arab men.

About half of Israelis say Hamas is representative of the Palestinians

Respondents were asked whether, despite its actions, Hamas should be recognized as a representative organization for large segments of the Palestinian people. On this question, almost all segments of the population looked roughly the same: 46.5% of Arabs said...