Support for Likud has eroded over the past two months but the Right continues to be in better position to form a coalition, a poll aired on the Hadashot evening news on Tuesday shows.
In May, the ruling right-wing party was projected to win 35 Knesset seats, but the poll from Tuesday had the Likud at 30 seats – its current Knesset size.
Zionist Union, the main opposition faction comprising Labor and Hatnuah, kept its strength compared to the previous poll and was projected to win 15 seats. However, it lost support compared to the previous election, when it won 24 seats.
The centrist Yesh Atid party gained strength compared to the previous poll, picking up one extra projected seat to 19. Habayit Hayehudi was projected to win eight seats, according to the new poll, up one compared to May. Yesh Atid currently has 11 Knesset seats and Habayit Hayehudi has eight. MK Moshe Kahlon's Kulanu party was expected to win seven seats, up from six in the May poll, but down from its current 10 seats.
The right-wing Yisrael Beytenu party also gained momentum compared to the previous poll, rising from six to seven projected seats. The ultra-Orthodox Ashkenazi party United Torah Judaism, which has six Knesset seats, was projected to win seven seats. Its Sephardi counterpart Shas, which currently holds seven seats, was projected to win five seats.
Support for the Meretz party had not changed and it was expected to retain its five Knesset seats. MK Orly Levy-Abekasis, who split from Yisrael Beytenu to form her own party, was expected to win five seats, preserving her strength compared to the previous poll.
The Joint Arab List, a coalition of predominantly Arab parties, was projected to win 12 seats, the same number it was projected to win in the previous poll. It currently has 13 Knesset seats.
Excluding the haredi parties, the new poll predicted that right-wing parties would win 52 mandates in the next elections, while the Left was set to win 39 seats. This shows a slight uptick in support for the Left, although it would still be at a disadvantage if it were to try to form a governing coalition – it would need to win a confidence vote in the Knesset plenum, which is unlikely unless it gets the backing of the haredim.
