The latest election poll conducted by KAN Reshet Bet News shows the Likud party remains the largest party in Israel, with 31 seats. The poll shows Likud maintains its strength, the chareidim are down a bit, while the Labor party picks up slightly.

The poll was conducted by Direct Polls and supervised by Natali Feldman. Following are the results. 954 respondents were polled, representing a cross-section of Israeli voters 18 and older.

Likud 31
Chosen Yisrael 15 (Benny Gantz)
Yesh Atid 11
Labor 9
New Right 8 (Naftali Bennet & Ayelet Shaked)
Yahadut Hatorah 6
Meretz 6
Arab List 6
Ta’al 6 (Ahmed Tibi)
Yisrael Beitenu 5
Shas 5
Bayit Yehudi 4
Kulanu 4
Gesher 4 (Orli Abekasis-Levi, who broke off from Yisrael Beitenu)

Right-wing:
Likud (31), New Right (8), Yisrael Beitenu (5) Bayit Yehudi (4), Gesher (4) total 52

Left-wing:
Chosen Yisrael (15), Yesh Atid (11), Labor (9), Meretz (6), Kulanu (4) total 45

Chareidim:
Yahadut Hatorah( 6), Shas (5) total 11

Arab parties:
Ta’al (6), Arab list (6) total 12

The chareidi parties are listed separately because while they are perceived as being right-wing, they have been members of a left-wing government coalition in the past, as their main issues surround the drafting of bnei Torah and funding for yeshivos. Yahadut Hatorah is without a doubt socialist and can find its comfort zone in a left-wing government, in which many of its financial and social views are more in line with Yahadut Hatorah than a Likud-led government. The same hold true for Shas and its leader, Aryeh Deri.

The Arab parties traditionally remain in opposition.

Are you for or against the attorney general releasing his decision before elections? This refers to his decision regarding investigations against Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

54% favor announcing his decision
38% are opposed to making an announcement
8% are undecided

Who should head the center/left if such a bloc is established?
32% Benny Gantz
21% Yair Lapid
47% Do not know or no opinion

Once again, clearly Benny Gantz has neutralized the ability of Yesh Atid to become the second largest party in Israel and according to this poll, there is more trust in Gantz as a former IDF Chief of Staff than in Yair Lapid, who was a television host before entering Knesset.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)