Polls have repeatedly indicated that Netanyahu’s coalition would fail to win a majority at the next election. [Getty]
Benjamin Netanyahu will seek re-election this year, his party announced on Wednesday, after US President Donald Trump said he wasn’t sure if the Israeli prime minister would stand again.
In a brief statement, Netanyahu’s Likud Party said he would run in the election and, God willing, he would win. The election has not yet been formally announced, but it must be held by October.
Earlier, ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl posted on X that Trump had told him he did not know if Netanyahu would stand.
“I don’t know, he’s had an amazing career. Does he want to continue?” the journalist quoted Trump as saying.
The Israeli election will be the first since Israel launched its genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023.
After decades in power, Netanyahu heads the most right-wing, fundamentalist coalition in Israeli history. He faced mass anti-government protests before the genocidal wars against Gaza, Lebanon and Iran. He and several members of his government are wanted for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and crimes of genocide.
Polls have repeatedly indicated that his coalition would fail to win a majority at the next election. A poll published by the Jerusalem-based Israel Democracy Institute think tank on 9 June said that 61% of the Israeli public believe he should not run.
However, polls also show that a potential opposition coalition would fall short of a parliamentary majority unless it partners with Arab parties, a move some opposition leaders have ruled out.
US and Israeli officials say Trump and Netanyahu, who launched the Iran war together in February, still have a close relationship, though it has at times seen strain, including in recent weeks as Trump has demanded Israel curb its invasion of Lebanon while Washington negotiates a peace deal with Tehran.
