Netanyahu May Be Ousted. Who Comes Next?
The alternative is right-leaning and security-focused, too.
What’s happening: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may soon be ousted from power.
The catalyst: Netanyahu’s pitch has been that he is the only person who can keep Israel safe. But after the October 7 attack occurred under his watch, many believe he is more concerned with staying in power rather than protecting Israel.
American pressure: President Joe Biden endorsed Sen. Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) speech that argued for Netanyahu to be ousted. Additionally, according to the U.S. Intelligence Community’s 2024 Annual Threat Assessment, “Netanyahu’s viability as leader … may be in jeopardy.”
Israeli pressure: Polls show if elections were held today, Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party would win only 18 seats — a major drop from the 32 it currently holds. Only 34 percent of Israelis say Netanyahu is fit to be prime minister, and only 15 percent say he should keep his position after the war in Gaza ends.
What’s next? Polls show Benny Gantz’s right-leaning National Unity party would win 37 seats, meaning he would likely become the prime minister in an election.
Who is Gantz? He is a former Minister of Defense and, like Netanyahu, is security-focused. However, Israelis currently trust him more than Netanyahu. He has not endorsed or rejected the idea of a two-state solution for Palestine but maintains Israel must keep security control of the West Bank and will never give the Golan Heights back to Syria.
A misconception: Israel’s response to Hamas’s October 7 attack would likely not have changed with someone other than Netanyahu as prime minister. Destroying Hamas, going into Rafah, and freeing the hostages has broad support across Israeli society and among politicians, even with those not in Netanyahu’s coalition, such as Gantz.
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