A Channel 12 poll found that 64% of Israelis surveyed said U.S. President Donald Trump’s endorsement would leave their voting intentions unchanged, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s allies remained short of a projected Knesset majority.
In the Oct. 19 survey, 17% said Trump’s backing made them less likely to support Netanyahu’s Likud party, while 12% said it strengthened their support. The responses measure intentions ahead of the Oct. 27 election.
Channel 12 projected 24 seats for Yashar, led by Gadi Eisenkot, and 21 for Likud in the 120-seat Knesset. Each party gained one projected seat from the broadcaster’s previous poll. Parties aligned with Netanyahu totaled 51 seats, 10 short of the 61 needed for a majority.
The broadcaster projected 69 seats for parties outside Netanyahu’s bloc, including 14 for Arab parties. That total does not mean those parties have agreed to govern together. Channel 12 attributed part of the shift in its seat projections to a smaller party falling below the threshold for entering parliament.
In a separate question about who was better suited to be prime minister, 45% chose Eisenkot and 33% chose Netanyahu. Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett led Netanyahu 39% to 34% in another matchup. Israelis elect the Knesset; parties then negotiate over who will form a government.
Trump endorsed Netanyahu on Oct. 18, citing their cooperation against Iran. Channel 12 political correspondent Daphna Liel said it was too early to judge the endorsement’s full electoral effect.
Channel 12 said the survey covered 507 adults and had a margin of error of 4.4 percentage points. The next measure will be the Oct. 27 vote, followed by talks to form a government.
