Polls & Research

Security is Key Issue in Israeli Election

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Almost half of people in Israel believe security and peace are the most important electoral issues at this time, according to the Peace Index Project by the Tami Steinmetz Center for Peace Research and the Evens Program in Mediation and Conflict Resolution of Tel Aviv University. 47 per cent of respondents think a party’s position on security and peace will matter the most when they decide who to support in February’s election to the Knesset.

A party’s position on social issues and education is second on the list with 23 per cent, followed by a party’s position on economic issues.

In March 2006, Israeli voters renewed the Knesset. Kadima, founded by former prime minister Ariel Sharon and led by Ehud Olmert, secured 29 seats in the legislature. Labour, the International Organization of Torah-observant Sephardic Jews (Shas), and the Retired People’s Party (Gil) joined Kadima in a coalition. In October, the Israeli cabinet approved the addition of Israel Our Home to the Olmert-led government.

In May, Israeli police raided the offices of Jerusalem’s city government and seized documents related to Olmert’s tenure as mayor, from 1993 to 2003. In July, Olmert announced that he would not participate in an extraordinary internal ballot for Kadima’s leadership. In September, Israeli foreign minister Tzipi Livni defeated transportation minister Shaul Mofaz in a close race to become Kadima’s new leader.

Livni was supposed to take over as Israel’s prime minister, but was unable to assemble a government. A snap election will take place on Feb. 10, 2009.

On Nov. 8, Labour leader Ehud Barak expressed concerns over Jewish extremism, saying, "We used to call them wild weeds, but now they are tumours with secondary growths. This is no longer a warning sign; it’s a threat to democracy, the Israeli Defence Forces, the police and to all the authorities of a normal society."

On Nov. 9, Shas chairman Eli Yishai demanded an apology from Barak, declaring, "This is a miserable statement. It incites against the Right, a sector that constitutes the majority in Israel. This is an attempt to exclude this sector from the consensus. (...) I oppose any sort of generalization. [Barak’s] words can lead to incitement instead of to unity."

Polling Data

Which issues will matter the most when you decide which party to support in February’s election to the Knesset?

The party’s position on security and peace	47%
The party’s position on social issues and education	23%
The party’s position on economic issues	13%

Source: Peace Index Project / Tami Steinmetz Center for Peace Research / Evens Program in Mediation and Conflict Resolution of Tel Aviv University
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 598 Israeli adults, conducted from Nov. 3 to Nov. 5, 2008. Margin of error is 4.5 per cent.