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Angus Reid Global Monitor : Polls & Research
Only 15% Satisfied with Olmert in Israel
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Very few people in Israel are content with Ehud Olmert, according to a poll by Dialog published in Haaretz. Only 15 per cent of respondents are satisfied with the way the Kadima leader is handling his job as prime minister, down five points since November.
In March 2006, Israeli voters renewed the Knesset. Kadima, founded by former prime minister Ariel Sharon and led by Olmert, secured 29 seats. Labour, the Retired People's Party (Gil) and the International Organization of Torah-observant Sephardic Jews (Shas) joined Kadima in a coalition. In October, the Israeli cabinet approved the addition of Israel Our Home to the government. Olmert's coalition now has the support of 78 of the Knesset's 120 members.
A preview of the so-called Winograd Report—which looked into Israel's handling of last year's conflict with Lebanon-based Hezbollah—was released in late April. The document, drafted by a special commission appointed by the prime minister to investigate Israel's military and political actions during the war, found Olmert, then defence minister Amir Peretz and then Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) chief of staff Dan Halutz responsible for "very serious failings" when making decisions throughout this period.
On Jul. 4, Olmert shuffled his cabinet and appointed Chaim Ramon as deputy prime minister. Ronnie Bar-On, a long-time Olmert confidant, took over as finance minister replacing Avraham Hirchson, who had resigned over a police investigation into allegations of embezzlement at a workers' union he headed in 2003. 24 per cent of respondents think the new cabinet is better than the previous one, while the same number think it is worse.
As the new appointees were sworn in, Olmert declared: "Today more than ever, the government represents stability, political solidity and the ability to seriously address the problems at hand. We are a nation that throws ourselves around and sometimes loses our balance."
Polling Data
Are you satisfied with the performance of Ehud Olmert as prime minister?
Jul. 2007 | Nov. 2006 | |
Yes | 15% | 20% |
No | 74% | 70% |
Don't know | 11% | 10% |
Is the new composition of the Olmert government better than the previous composition?
Better | 24% |
Same | 29% |
Worse | 24% |
Source: Dialog / Haaretz
Methodology: Interviews with 480 Israeli adults, conducted on Jul. 7, 2007. Margin of error is 5.2 per cent.