Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that despite police recommendation to indict him for corruption, the coalition remains stable and it is unlikely general elections would be called in the near future.
The Police announced Tuesday that they had gathered sufficient evidence to indict Netanyahu in two corruption probes, saying the evidence pointed to alleged fraud and breach of trust, as well as soliciting and accepting bribes.
Netanyahu denied any wrongdoing and has called the police findings "biased and extreme, and riddled with holes like Swiss cheese."
Speaking at the annual conference of the Federation of Local Authorities in Israel, Netanyahu said, "I would like to assure you that the coalition is stable. No one, not I, not anyone else, has any plans to call for elections. We will continue to work with you for the good of the Israeli public until the end of the [government's] term."
Key coalition partners said rallied around Netanyahu on Wednesday, saying the saw no reason for him to step down until such time as Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit makes a final decision on whether to indict him, a process law enforcement officials familiar with the case told Israel Hayom could take at least six months.
Polls held by Israel's two commercial channels, Channel 10 and Hadashot evening news, on Wednesday shows that despite the dramatic developments in the cases involving the prime minister, the Likud party remain as the largest party in parliament.
The Hadashot survey found that were elections be held at this time the Likud would win 26 Knesset seats, up one seat from previous polls. Yesh Atid would win 22 mandates, followed by Zionist Union (15), the Joint Arab List (12) and Habayit Hayehudi (11).
Kulanu would win nine seats, followed by Meretz and United Torah Judaism with seven mandates each. Yisrael Beytenu would win six seats and Shas five.
The Channel 10 News survey found that Likud would win 27 seats, Yesh Atid would win 25 mandates and Zionist Union would secure 16 seats. Habayit Hayehudi and the Joint Arab List would win 11 seats each, and Meretz would win seven.
Another poll by Hadashot found that 45% of the public believe Netanyahu should step down following the police's recommendations, while 40% think he should remain in office pending the attorney general's decision.
Almost half of Israel's electorate, 49%, believe the police's assertion that Netanyahu had acted improperly. Twenty-five percent said they believed Netanyahu, who denies any wrongdoing. The remainder, 26%, said they did not know whom to believe.
Voters for Netanyahu's Likud party tended to favor the prime minister: 50% said they believed his denial of wrongdoing; 60% said the investigation was a deliberate attempt to topple him, and 73% said he should remain in office.
