As newly conducted polls show Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is gaining more public approval than Benjamin Netanyahu, reports suggest he may soon return to politics.
According to a report by Israel’s N12 on Saturday night, former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett may have plans to return to politics, a move that can be interpreted as a call for challenging current PM Benjamin Netanyahu.
The report noted that though there is no formal request by the Knesset for holding an early election, members of Bennet’s former campaign have begun reaching out to individuals who had previously supported him to replace Netanyahu and become Israel’s next prime minister.
“Bennett’s team has contacted over a hundred previous employees and followers to gauge their support. This comes after recent polls showed the former Prime Minister leading in terms of suitability for the role of Prime Minister, with a substantial edge over other parties,” the report said.
Bennet can bet Bibi in an early election!
According to the results of a newly-conducted poll in Israel, 40 percent of Israelis have said that they would vote for Bennet if an election be held today. However, only 29 percent of the respondents said they would choose Netanyahu over other candidates.
Compared to opposition leader Yair Lapid, Netanyahu received 31% over Lapid’s 29% for suitability. However, in both cases, many respondents felt that none of these options were preferable when Bennet is also an option.
The poll further showed that if Bennett runs today, his party would also receive 20 seats, the same number as Netanyahu’s Likud Party. The National Camp would receive 13 seats, and an ‘anti-Netanyahu bloc’ – excluding the Arab parties Ra’am and Hadash-Ta’al – would receive 61 seats.
These positive signs of public support have sarked an enthusiasm in Bennet to show interest in running for PM again as a new survey by Kan News and the Kantar Institute revealed Bennet’s intention to establish a new right-wing party. This party is predicted to win 27 seats, primarily at the expense of existing center and right-wing parties, pushing Religious Zionism below the electoral threshold.
