47% of Jews believe that the new government will tilt against the situation of Israeli Arabs
The Israel Democracy Institute released a poll on Wednesday showing that 70% of secular Jews in Israel are worried about their ability to preserve their way of life under the new government, deemed the most religious and right-wing in the country’s history. The survey, conducted by the Viterbi Center for the Study of Public Opinion and Politics, also found that 75% of Israeli society believe the political influence of the ultra-Orthodox is greater than their share in the community population.
Two months after the elections, there was an average 6% drop in optimism about the future of Israel’s democratic government, from 46% in November to 40% in December. Among Jews, the optimism rate fell from 48% in November to 42% in December, while among Arabs it fell from 34% in November to 33% in December.
Regarding the expected change in Israel’s status on the international scene, 85% on the left predict a change for the worse against 74% on the center. On the other hand, on the right, only 36% believe that Israel’s position will be undermined with the new government.
In addition, 47% of Jews consider that the new government will tilt against the situation of Israeli Arabs, 53% of Arabs have a similar opinion. Among left-wing Jews, 78% think so, compared to 61.5% in the center and 36% in the right-wing camp.
In addition, 51.5% of respondents say they are bothered by a “threat to their way of life” following the strengthening of religious groups in Israeli society. About 75% of respondents believe that the influence of the ultra-Orthodox on Israeli politics is very large or quite large compared to their share of the population. On the other hand, 57% of respondents said that the influence of women and the LGBT community on Israeli politics is lower than their share in the population.
In the survey, which was conducted online and by telephone between the dates of December 26-28, 2022, 601 men and women were interviewed in Hebrew and 150 in Arabic. The margin of error is approximately 3.59%.