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By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
According to a Maariv survey, Israel’s National Security Minister Ben Gvir is the favorite to succeed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as leader of the current coalition’s right-wing bloc when Netanyahu leaves politics.
Those who support the pro-Netanyahu bloc of the coalition preferred the Otzma Yehudit leader Itamar Ben Gvir (24%) over ex-Mossad chief Yossi Cohen (14%) and Bezalel Smotrich, head of the fellow far-right Religious Zionism party (11%).
The poll, conducted by Lazar Research Institute along with Panel4All on July 10 and 11, surveyed 500 Israeli adults. Its margin of error is 4.4%.
The poll was consistent with similar surveys, which found that, if the election were held today, Benny Gantz’s opposition National Unity would triple its current 8 seats to 24 in the Knesset, Netanyahu’s Likud party would win only 20 seats compared to its current 32 and Ben Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit would gain 4 seats from its current 6 to hold 10.
Opposition leader Yesh Atid, led by Yair Lapid, would win only 24 seats compared to its current 13.
Yisrael Beytenu would have its strongest showing in 15 years with 14 seats compared to its current 6.
Avigdor Liberman, head of Yisrael Beytenu, has staunchly refused to join Netanyahu’s current government, although he has done so in the past.
Smotrich’s Religious Zionism would have just 4 seats compared to its current 7.
The Democratic party, comprised of Labor and Meretz and headed by Yair Golan would have just 9 seats.
The number of seats held by ultra-orthodox and Arab parties largely remained unchanged in the poll.
The coalition would win only 50 down from the 64 seats they have now out of 120 total Knesset seats.
The opposition parties would win just 60 seats, and the rest would be held by Arab parties, which usually don’t join the government.
Those surveyed asked that if a new right-wing party was formed, including former premier Naftali Bennett, Yisrael Beytenu chief Avigdor Liberman, Yossi Cohen, New Hope chief Gideon Sa’ar, and former minister Ayelet Shaked, it would have the largest number of seats at 27, followed by Likud with 18 and National Unity with 16.
Naftali Bennett was the favorite to head such a party (34%), followed by Liberman (11%), Cohen (9%), Sa’ar (8%), and Shaked (5%).
When asked who is a better choice for Prime Minister, Bennett led by 13 points (48% to 35%) in a pairing of Bennett and Netanyahu.
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When asked who is a better choice to be Prime Minister, in a pairing of Gantz and Netanyahu, Gantz led by 5 points (43% to 38%).
