Israel shifts right, but Netanyahu's coalition is losing ground: Here's why - analysis

The Israeli public has shifted right after the war, yet the right-wing coalition parties are losing support. An estimated 15 to 25 mandates of right-wing voters are currently unwilling to vote for Likud, the Religious Zionist Party, or Otzma Yehudit. The opposition, led by Eisenkot, Bennett, Liberman, and Gantz, is trying to attract these voters by adopting a tough security line, but their past records and potential partnerships with left-wing parties may undermine their appeal.

The Israeli public has shifted to the right following the war, but the right-wing coalition parties are losing ground. An estimated 15 to 25 mandates of right-wing voters are currently unwilling to vote for any of the three existing right-wing parties: Likud, the Religious Zionist Party, and Otzma Yehudit. This dissonance is keeping Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other right-wing leaders awake at night, while providing hope for the opposition. The shift to the right is reflected in three areas: tradition and Judaism, a hard-line security outlook, and support for settlement in Judea and Samaria. If 68 mandates in the current Knesset believed in these values before October 7, estimates now suggest more than 70, perhaps even 75. However, polls show the opposite trend, with the most favorable poll giving these parties 62 mandates. The opposition, led by Gadi Eisenkot, Naftali Bennett, Avigdor Liberman, and Benny Gantz, is attempting to attract these right-wing voters by adopting a tough, combative line and promising mass recruitment of haredim into the IDF. However, they have little or no answer on the third value of Jewish tradition. The article argues that despite their new images, these leaders have fallen into hard-line leftism when it mattered, citing Eisenkot's support for the two-state solution and Liberman's plan to relinquish territory.