As time goes on and the Coronavirus crisis weighs more heavily each day on the government and the public continues to lose trust in those making policy to fight the virus, the most recent political poll has indicated a severe shift in power in the Israeli political map. For the first time in a number of years, Likud has lost enough seats to bring it back down to the 20s in the poll and the Blue and White party has plummeted. Whereas the poll shows Naftali Bennett’s Yamina party soaring to heights never before dreamed of.

Following Bennett’s strong showing in fighting the Coronavirus as Defense Minister in the spring, the public has seemed to throw their trust behind the Yamina leader, who two election cycles previously, was not voted into the Knesset at all. The poll, which was conducted by Channel 12 news and published on Wednesday evening, shows the Likud dropped to 29 seats and Yamina rose to 21 seats, becoming the second largest party in the Knesset.

Yesh Atid-Telem group is slated to receive 17 seats while the Joint Arab List is polled at reaching 15 seats. The Blue and White party headed by alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz, dropped to nine seats, tied with Shas and just one ahead of Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu party. UTJ is slated to receive seven seats and Meretz pulls up the rear with its usual 5 seats.

The party of Derech Eretz created by Yoaz Hendel and Tzvi Hauser is slated to receive 0.6 percent of the vote and not pass the threshold. In a similar fate are The Jewish Home party, Labor, and Gesher.

According to the division of seats, the poll shows the right-wing receiving 66 mandates and the left-wing/Arab lboc receiving just 46 with Lieberman receiving 8. With Netanyahu having no way to form a government without Bennett, the opportunity would be golden for Bennett to demand a rotation for the position of Prime Minister, and finally pave his way to Balfour Street.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)