Support for Netanyahu and Likud growing, Israeli poll shows

[Scurrilous]

<snip>

"Support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his ruling Likud party has grown since he took office over six months ago, according to an opinion poll published Friday.

If elections were held today, the Likud would get six more mandates to become the largest party in the Israeli parliament, said the survey by the Dahaf polling institute, commissioned by Israel's biggest-selling daily, Yediot Ahronot.

The hardline but mainstream party, which in February elections won 27 of the 120 seats in the Knesset, would get 33 if a new ballot were held today, it indicated.

The centrist Kadima party of former foreign minister Tzipi Livni, now in the opposition, would stay the same with 28 Knesset seats."

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Israel's Labour party in free-fall: poll

<snip>

"Labour, the dominant party for the first three decades of Israel's existence, would only get seven MPs in the 120-strong parliament if elections were held today, according to a public opinion poll published on Friday.

The party headed by Defence Minister Ehud Barak already saw its support plummet in the February elections when it got only 13 MPs.

The poll published in the Yediot Aharonot daily said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party would get 33 seats, the centrist Kadima 28 and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman ultra-nationalist Israel Beitenu 12.

The survey was conducted among 500 people and has a margin of error of 4.5 percentage points.

Labour governed Israel since the creation of 1948 until 1977."

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hhp1DY-78Pgvvf2EWDWSrqUPMEdg

[oberliner]

1. Nice to see a drop for Lieberman's party

Let's hope that trend continues.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

I'm not sure that's right.

Cynically, peace isn't going to come from inside Israel, and YB may be the best hope for having it imposed from outside.

On the other hand, having them as part of his coalition makes it easier for Netayahu to pretend that he's only not making peace because his hands are tied; YB losing support would rob him of one convenient excuse.

[oberliner]

9. Personally I think serious election reform is needed

Livni's party won the most seats yet she was not asked to form a government.

That seems unfair.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

10. A plurality, but not a majority.

I guess - although I don't know for sure - that since Netanyahu was able to form a government, Livni wouldn't have been able to - although I suppose it's possible that some political parties would simply have gone for "whoever was asked first".

[Donald Ian Rankin]

7. Dupe, delete

[Kurska]

2. Likud grew at the expesnse of Labor and YIsrael Beitenu, Interesting.

[oberliner]

3. The polls may be over-inflating Likud as they did before the election

Perhaps because Likud supporters skew older?

[Kurska]

4. Aren't older voters more reliable for showing up on election day?

Wouldn't older Likud Supporters actually make Likud Underrepresented in polls?

I think it is simple, Labor is bleeding out into likud and many people don't want to openly admit to supporting YB so they say they support Likud.

[oberliner]

5. I thought they were more likely to have land lines vs. cell phones

I thought that was why telephone polls generally skewed older.

A phone poll taken days before the election had Likud winning 31 seats when in reality they only won 27.

All the polls I saw leading up to the election had Likud winning the most seats and they ended up getting fewer than Kadima.

[Kurska]

6. Oh, I see what you're saying that makes sense.

The only remarkable part of those polls is Labor's drop in popularity then I suppose.

[oberliner]

8. Labor is certainly a mess right now

They need to figure out who they are and what they stand for or the free fall will continue.

[azurnoir]

11. Not a surprise at all

I mean look at the "powerful" stand Netanyahu has taken against the world:sarcasm: