Former Israeli army Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot has overtaken Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a public opinion poll on who is best suited to lead the country, while Netanyahu's right-wing coalition remains short of the parliamentary majority needed to govern.
The poll, broadcast by Israeli public television network KAN, projected 22 seats for Eisenkot's Yashar party in the 120-seat Knesset, compared with 20 seats for Netanyahu's Likud—down one seat from the previous week's survey—ahead of national elections scheduled for October 27.
In head-to-head suitability, Eisenkot secured 43 percent backing against 38 percent for Netanyahu.
Netanyahu's broader right-wing and religious bloc gained two seats to 53, leaving the incumbent prime minister eight mandates short of the 61-seat majority needed to build a viable governing coalition.
Parliamentary arithmetic
Eisenkot's opposing bloc was projected to secure 50 seats, while the remaining 17 seats were distributed among parties classified outside both political camps.
Arab factions were projected to take 13 seats collectively, eight for the Joint List and five for Mansour Abbas's United Arab List (Ra'am).
Within Netanyahu's coalition, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's Jewish Power secured nine seats, United Torah Judaism eight, Shas seven, and the Religious Zionism–Zehut alliance five.
Amcha Yisrael, headed by former brigadier general Ofer Winter, cleared the electoral threshold with four seats after previously failing to do so.
The findings underline entrenched political gridlock, indicating that neither Netanyahu's bloc nor the Jewish opposition camp can form an independent government without reaching across factional divides.
The survey also revealed acute voter fluidity, with 30 percent of electors undecided and 21 percent considering boycotting the poll, whilst 54 percent supported a televised debate between the two main contenders.
