Poll points to Gantz building lead over Netanyahu; right-wing, Orthodox bloc falls to 45 seats

Benny Gantz’s National Unity party continues to build on its lead over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud, according to a poll published by Channel 13.

The survey finds that if elections were held today, National Unity would win 38 seats, trouncing Likud, which would win just 16 seats.

Opposition chairman Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid party would fall to 15 seats; ultra-Orthodox Shas party would receive nine seats; far-right Otzma Yehudit party would receive eight seats; right-wing, secular Yisrael Beytenu party would receive eight seats; ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party would receive seven seats; Islamist Ra’am party would receive six seats; far-right Religious Zionism party would receive five seats; left-wing Meretz party would receive four seats; and Arab-majority Hadash-Ta’al party would receive four seats.

The left-leaning Labor party and the ultra-nationalist Balad party would not cross the electoral threshold, the poll finds.

The hardline coalition Netanyahu formed one year ago would receive 45 seats compared to the anti-Netanyahu bloc, which would receive 71 seats, not including the four seats from Hadash-Ta’al.

Asked how they would vote if Mossad chief Yossi Cohen was leading Likud, respondents gave the current-ruling party a five seat bump, exposing the extent of displeasure among right-wing voters with Netanyahu.

Given a scenario where Cohen, former prime minister Naftali Bennett and former Meretz Minister Yair Golan each headed a new party, the poll indicates that Cohen’s faction would receive six seats, Bennett’s 15 and Golan’s seven.

National Unity would drop to 23 seats in this scenario and Likud to 15 while Yesh Atid would plummet to 10.

Asked who was most suitable to be prime minister, 52% of respondents said Gantz and 31% said Netanyahu.