SadaNews Report: Israeli Election Polls Do Not Reflect the Expected Reality

SadaNews Exclusive - The Israeli opinion polls regarding the Knesset elections, which are published almost daily and weekly by Hebrew channels and newspapers, show disparities regarding the emerging political landscape in Israel. According to the monitoring by the Hebrew translation department at SadaNews, many of the polls may be unrelated to the expected reality, especially since they represent a temporary phase rather than a future one, given that there is still no agreement on whether the elections will take place in September or October. Hebrew newspapers rely on a small portion of the Israeli population, despite some attempts to reach followers of the far-right bloc, for example, at the expense of the smaller leftist or centrist blocks, or even what could be called the "moderate right." Currently, opinion polls cannot be relied upon, especially amidst the various fluctuations they show. For example, some far-right channels like Channel 14 rely on a specific segment of supporters for their parties, while Channel 13 aims through specialized centers to reach several sides, indicating that each media institution searches for what serves its interests and agendas. The editor of "Hebrew Affairs" notes that as the elections approach, opinion polls become more accurate and important than they are at the moment and reflect the expected reality during that period. He pointed out that in some opinion polls published about two weeks ago, the leader of the Likud party, Benjamin Netanyahu, showed a slight decline against his rival, Naftali Bennett, but the latter recently declined in favor of Gadi Eisenkot, whereas in new opinion polls a few days ago, Netanyahu has returned to the top. The editor clarified that this depends on the fluctuations in the political situation, which also indicates a problem related to the inability of current opinion polls to determine Israel's political reality and future, especially since each channel and newspaper tends to highlight opinion polls based on their reliance on specific parties and to a lesser extent those who compete with them. He mentioned that some parties align with Hebrew channels or opinion polling centers to conduct polls to try to understand their political reality within Israeli society. However, at times, the accuracy of those polls is lacking, which tend to become more significant and precise as elections draw near.