Poll: In new Israeli election, right-wing still comes out on top

The Ma’ariv survey shows that the right-wing-religious bloc would rise from 65 to 68 seats.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

If Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can’t pull together a coalition, and the country goes to back-to-back elections, it would work in the right’s favor, says a Ma’ariv poll published on Monday.

The survey, taken by Panels Politics, showed that the Likud would stay steady at 35 seats. The haredi, or ultra-Orthodox parties, United Torah Judaism and Shas, would also hold with eight seats each.

The change this time involves the New Right party. It failed to pass the electoral threshold by 1,400 votes. In a second election, the poll finds the party winning five seats. Also, the United Right Wing, a coalition of smaller right-wing religious-Zionist parties, and the Israel Beiteinu party would each haul in an additional seat, giving them six Knesset seats each.

This would give the right wing bloc 68 seats, even without Kulanu. That party, led by Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon will not pass the voter threshold in a second election, according to the poll.

The poll’s scenario would also make the coalition easier to build as Israel Beiteinu head Avigdor Liberman would not be able to prevent the government from being formed, as is the case today. Even without him, the government would have 62 seats, a slim but sufficient Knesset majority.

The poll also finds that the Arab party Balad-Ra’am would fail to enter the Knesset. The Knesset Central Elections Committee had banned the party from running due to its extremist anti-Zionist stance. The Supreme Court, however, rejected the committee’s decision.

Balad-Ra’am votes would partly be picked up by the far-left Meretz party and another Arab joint list, Hadash-Ta’al. Each would gain one seat, the poll says.

The Blue and White party would lose one seat, according to the poll. Altogether, the left-wing and Arab parties would control 52 seats in the legislature.

The online poll was taken on Sunday by Panel4All’s political panel. It surveyed 503 adults form both the Arab and Jewish populations, with a 4.4 percent margin of error.

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