Netanyahu's Likud party to lose half of Knesset seats, opinion poll shows

With global voices snubbing Israel for human rights violations and describing Palestinian killings as "genocide," the latest opinion poll shows that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party would lose half of its MPs in parliament if elections were held now.

According to the opinion poll released late on Thursday by Israeli Channel 13, the Likud party would only win 16 seats in the Knesset if elections were held today.

Currently, the Likud holds 32 seats in the 120-member Knesset.

The survey suggests that the National Unity party, a centrist and liberal political alliance led by former Defense Minister Benny Gantz, would be the largest party in the Knesset with 38 seats, up from its current 12 seats.

The party Yesh Atid (There is a Future) led by Yair Lapid has also lost popularity, according to the survey, and would lose its parliamentary strength from 24 MPs to 15 MPs and would be the third largest party in the Knesset if elections were held now.

Recent polls have consistently shown a decline in Likud's popularity over the past few months.

Israeli Channel 13 commented, "Likud's collapse has been ongoing since the outbreak of the war. If elections were held today, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's party would win only 16 seats, just one more than Yair Lapid's party."

Support eroding

The channel pointed out that if elections were held now, Likud and its coalition parties, which include ultra-Orthodox parties Shas and United Torah Judaism, and far-right pro-settler parties Jewish Power and Religious Zionism, would only secure 45 seats, compared to the current 64.

Forming a government in Israel requires the confidence of at least 61 members of the Knesset.

In contrast, the poll suggests that opposition parties could win 71 seats, with the Democratic Front for Peace (Hadash) and the Arab Movement for Change (Taal) alliance securing four seats.

The survey also indicates that if Netanyahu were replaced as the Likud leader by former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen, the party would secure 23 seats, compared to 33 for the National Unity party.

The channel mentioned that the survey was conducted by Israeli polling expert Camil Fuchs and included a random sample of 700 Israelis, with a margin of error of 3.7 percent.

There is currently no indication of the possibility of parliamentary elections amid the ongoing war in Gaza since Oct. 7. However, Israeli estimates suggest the possibility of Israel returning to the polls after the war.