The Israeli public has a suspicious view of the High Court of Justice when it comes to its handling of cases dealing with public policy and elected officials, a new Israel Hayom polls shows.
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According to the poll, some 26% of the public believes that the court's decisions on key issues are "mostly political" and 11% say they are "always political." Only 28% said the High Court's rulings are "mostly professional."
When it comes to the overall trust in the High Court of Justice, the public is split. When asked whether they "generally believe the High Court of Justice," 46% of respondents said they do, while 40% said they don't.
The Israel Defense Forces got the highest score on that question, with 81% of respondents saying they believe the IDF and only 10% saying they do not.
The Knesset also suffers from a trust deficit. Some 67% of respondents said they do not believe the legislature, while only 22% said they do.
Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit, who has led the investigations against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in three corruption cases over the past 3 years, has also suffered in public opinion, with only 32% believing him, and 47% saying they do not believe him.
Some 50% justified the High Court of Justice petitions challenging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's authority to form a fifth government while standing trial for alleged corruption, with 31% saying the legal challenges had no justifiable rationale.
The public was also split on whether the High Court of Justice has the constitutional authority to strike down parts of the coalition deal being negotiated between Netanyahu's Likud party and Blue and White, which is designed to ensure a rotating premiership for the next three years.
The agreement has come under fire because it involves major amendments to Israel's Basic Laws, which serve as the country's de facto constitution.
The poll was conducted by the Maagar Mochot polling institute with a representative sample of 508 Israeli adults selected at random. The margin of error stands at 4.4 percentage points.
