Trump Refuses to Endorse as Israel Heads to Tight Vote — SkimNews
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- Trump holds 69% Israeli confidence (Pew, mid-2025) and a 73% rating above the average US president (JPPI, February 2026), yet has dodged endorsing Netanyahu three times in a TIME interview and offered only "we may endorse somebody" this week.
- Gadi Eisenkot and Naftali Bennett camps have quietly asked Trump's circle to stay neutral and are getting their wish; Trump said in June he "didn't hear bad things" about Eisenkot.
- The October 27 election is statistically deadlocked across five polls: Yashar averages 22.2 seats to Likud's 21.2, with Netanyahu's bloc at 54.4 and the Zionist opposition at 51 — neither reaching the 61-seat majority.
- Israel Democracy Institute polling showed belief that Trump prioritizes Israel's security fell from 44% in May to 28% in June, while Jewish respondents' trust dropped 38 points between March and June.
- Trump pressed Israel to curb Lebanon operations and pull back from Syria, called Netanyahu "crazy" with an expletive, and wrote to President Herzog demanding a pardon in Netanyahu's criminal trial.
Why it matters: With Netanyahu's bloc at 54.4 seats and the opposition at 51, neither side has the 61 needed to govern. Trump's withholding of endorsement keeps Eisenkot and Bennett seeking his neutrality while Likud candidates apologize within hours for insulting him — his leverage over Israel's coalition math now exceeds that of any single Israeli politician.
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