Jerusalem Voters Split Over Netanyahu Ahead of Knesset Vote

Israel heads to the polls for the 26th Knesset election on Tuesday, and right-leaning voters in Jerusalem are split over whether Benjamin Netanyahu should remain prime minister.

The Maariv poll by Lazar Research published Friday put the gap between the opposition and coalition blocs at six seats. The same poll put turnout certainty at 81%, against 71% turnout in the 2022 election. About 60% of Israelis said they would prefer a unity government if no bloc clears the 61-seat threshold. The coalition bloc weakened by three seats compared with the previous week's poll.

In 2022, Likud took about 23% of the vote, Yesh Atid 17.79%, and the Religious Zionist Party 10.84%, according to the official Knesset website.

Reporters for the Jerusalem Post conducted randomized street interviews at Shuk Mahane Yehuda and on Ben Yehuda Street. Every interviewee leaned right, and gender was the only characteristic recorded. The Knesset has 120 seats; 61 are needed to govern.

Two voters said they would back Netanyahu. One said, "He is a great ally to America, America is a great ally to him." The other said, "his policies are the right ones to follow." A woman in Nachlaot who wants a government that "supports Torah learning" and "lower prices" said, "we love Netanyahu, but I don't understand too much politics, so I'm not sure, I have to ask my husband what exactly we are doing."

Others pointed elsewhere. A woman in Mahane Yehuda said, "I just know I don't want Bibi," and is leaning toward Naftali Bennett. A female supporter of Bennett said the people around him "are going to do good for the country and want to make good rules in Israel," adding that "he really cares about the country and not about populism or making money for himself." One man said he would pick "probably something not in the current government," adding, "I don't like part of their attitude."

Two interviewees named Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. One said, "I believe in the same values, and I think it's the best way for Israel, for the next [few] years." Another cited bitachon, meaning security, and said Smotrich "gives me things that I believe in and helps me with what I need." A man at Mahane Yehuda said he was voting for National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir over safety and security concerns. Voters also said Shas and the Religious Zionist Party are "good for the religious people, the Haredi people."

A woman in Nachlaot said, "For sure we want right wing." Several interviewees said their rabbis advise them not to disclose their vote.

Some residents said they defer to family on the question. Others declined to name a party, citing rabbinical guidance on keeping votes private.