A circus of ego and fear: the road to the ballot box has never been so murky | Idan Maraash

Idan Maraash criticizes Israeli political discourse four days before the elections: Netanyahu scares instead of answering, Ben-Gvir squabbles over portfolios, the opposition is mired in leadership struggles, and Golan raises concern. He calls for substantive discourse on security, economy, and education.

Idan Maraash, in an opinion column in Maariv, describes the current election campaign as a circus of ego and fear, four days before the vote. He claims that Netanyahu offers scaremongering instead of answers in his numerous interviews, mainly on Channel 14, and accuses the opposition of being mired in leadership struggles between Bennett, Lapid, and Eisenkot. Maraash expresses particular concern about Yair Golan, chairman of the Democrats, who he says could curtail civil liberties. He calls for substantive discourse on security, economy, and education, and mentions the Rabin assassination as a red line. The column reflects fatigue from acrimonious politics and calls for leadership responsibility.