Poll Numbers Show Israel’s Lieberman as Strong Contender for Prime Minister
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by Joshua Levitt
Avigdor Lieberman.
A new Israeli poll showed Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman gaining traction with state-wide multi-party support as a national leader in Israel, according to Israel’s Globes business daily on Friday. The numbers indicate that Lieberman may be a strong contender as the Jewish state’s next prime minister.
The poll, by Panorama Markets of 1,000 potential voters, showed that, among the general public, 62% see him as a national leader, and only 20% classify him as Russian. He has a strong base within his Yisrael Beitenu party, and very broad support within the ruling Likud party, it said, with 86% of Russian immigrants and 63% of Likud voters seeing him as a national leader.
Globes said the poll showed that Likud voters believe future party leadership will be between Lieberman and Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon.
It said that 10% of Likud voters see Lieberman as the best successor to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with Ya’alon ahead by just 1%, while Interior Minister Gideon Sa’ar has just 1.8% of the support.
Globes said Finance Minister Yair Lapid, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, Economy Minister Naftali Bennett, and Labor Party chairman Isaac Herzog “trail far behind Lieberman in response to the question of who would make the best prime minister.”
According to Globes: “The significance of the figures is that to win the Likud, Lieberman must continue to show party members that he has strong support among the general public, and that only he can win elections. This explains his kind words for Kerry and his support for the peace process. The Israeli center sees relations with the U.S. as a strategic asset… He will probably concern himself more with religious councils and less with civil marriage, and he has nowhere to go with the issue of territorial and population exchanges… Conversely, after he learned in his previous term that he would get little mileage out of pictures with Russian President Vladimir Putin, we can look forward to seeing pictures with Kerry and hugs with U.S. President Barack Obama.”
