Yashar Party Matches Likud at 21 Seats, Giving Opposition a Knesset Majority, Poll Shows

The Yashar party, led by Gadi Eisenkot, has overtaken Naftali Bennett’s Together and tied with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud for seats for the first time, according to a Maariv poll released Friday.

Since the launch of Operation Roaring Lion, Likud’s support has declined steadily and now stands at 21 seats.

The poll indicates that the opposition bloc, excluding Arab parties, would command a majority of 61 seats, while the current government coalition would hold just 49 seats.

Although Bezalel Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party is projected to clear the electoral threshold, the coalition still appears unable to secure a majority.

Since the war with Iran began, Likud has lost seven seats. The merger of former prime minister Naftali Bennett and opposition leader Yair Lapid’s parties into Together has also resulted in an eleven‑seat loss, while Yesh Atid has gained nine seats.

Maariv’s poll suggests that if Yashar and Together were to unite under Eisenkot’s leadership, they would win 37 seats—four fewer than the parties are predicted to win separately.

The poll also found that a Yashar‑Together alliance under Eisenkot would gain four seats compared with a unification under Bennett.

The survey shows that 49 % of Israelis are concerned about the ongoing rift between Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump, versus 43 % who are not.

Overall, the poll points to growing voter dissatisfaction with both Likud and the Bennett alliance, positioning Eisenkot’s Yashar as a major beneficiary and restoring a potential majority for the opposition.

The poll was conducted on June 10–11 by Lazar Research, led by Dr. Menachem Lazar, in cooperation with Panel4ALL. It surveyed 501 adults, representing a cross‑section of Israel’s Jewish and Arab population aged 18 and over. The maximum sampling error is 4.4 %.

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