i24NEWS poll: Netanyahu's bloc loses majority for the first time in the series
The survey shows a 60-60 tie between coalition and opposition for the first time in the series, with Likud holding as the largest party at 30 seats while new center-left parties reshape the opposition
For the first time in i24NEWS's sister Hebrew channel's ongoing polling series, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc has lost the majority needed to form a government, with the coalition and opposition tied at exactly 60 seats each, according to a new survey by Direct Polls published in i24NEWS's main Hebrew Evening Edition on Tuesday.
The poll points to a significant shift in Israel's political map, driven by the rise of new opposition parties and the consolidation of a clear blocking bloc on the center-left. Gadi Eisenkot has emerged as the leader of the so-called Change Bloc in the new data.
Inside the coalition
Likud remains the largest party in the Knesset with 30 seats. Its coalition partners, however, show mixed trends:
Shas: 10 seats
United Torah Judaism: 8 seats
Otzma Yehudit, led by Itamar Ben Gvir: 8 seats
The Religious Zionist Party, led by Bezalel Smotrich: 4 seats, barely clearing the electoral threshold
Together, the current coalition parties stand at exactly 60 seats - short of the 61 needed to form a government without additional partners.
Inside the opposition
The opposition bloc also reaches 60 seats, with a mix of new and veteran parties forming a clear blocking front:
Yashar, the breakthrough party of the cycle: 17 seats, the second-largest force in the Knesset
Together: 15 seats
The Democratic Party: 9 seats
Yisrael Beiteinu, led by Avigdor Lieberman: 8 seats
Ra'am: 6 seats
Hadash-Ta'al: 5 seats
Parties failing to clear the threshold
Four parties do not pass the electoral threshold in the current poll: Balad at 1.8 percent, the Economic Party at 1.7 percent, and the Reservists Party and Blue and White, both at less than one percent of voter support.
About the poll
The survey was conducted by Direct Polls Ltd. under the direction of Zuriel Sharon for i24NEWS Hebrew on May 19, 2026, using a digital system combined with a panel. It sampled 546 adult respondents (18+), representing a representative sample of the general population in Israel. The statistical sampling error is plus or minus 4.1 percent at a 95 percent confidence level.