Most Israelis don’t think new government will be formed — poll

A majority of Israelis do not believe a government will be formed following last month’s general elections, according to a television poll.

Asked if they think a government will be formed, 53 percent of respondents to the Channel 12 news survey say no, while 37% say yes.

With this, 46% say the most likely outcome is a fifth round of elections in slightly over 2 years, 27% believe Likud party leader Netanyahu will form a new government and 16% think the “change bloc” of parties opposed to the premier will put together a coalition. The remaining 11% don’t know.

A plurality of respondents — 44% — say Netanyahu has the best chance to form a government, followed by Yesh Atid chief Yair Lapid with 17% and Yamina leader Naftali Bennett with 13%. The rest of the respondents said someone else, no one or that they didn’t know.

The survey was conducted by pollster Manu Geva. The network didn’t say how many respondents were included in the poll or what the margin of error is.