'Post' poll finds 41% blame Netanyahu for housing crisis

Asked how the crisis impacts their vote, 47% said it had a significant or very significant impact.

By GIL STERN STERN HOFFMAN
Netanyahu speaks during a cornerstone laying ceremony in Sderot. (photo credit: REUTERS)
Netanyahu speaks during a cornerstone laying ceremony in Sderot.
(photo credit: REUTERS)
More than twice as many Israelis blame Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as anyone else for the housing crisis following the report on the crisis published Wednesday by State Comptroller Joseph Shapira, according to a poll taken that night for The Jerusalem Post and its Hebrew sister publication, Ma'ariv Sof Hashavua.
When asked who they blame for the crisis, 41 percent said Netanyahu, 20% Lapid, 16% the Israel Lands Authority, six percent former prime minister Ehud Olmert, two percent contractors, one percent Construction Minister Uri Ariel, and 14% said they did not know.
Asked how the crisis impacts their vote, 47% said it had a significant or very significant impact. Fifty-two percent said it only impacted their vote a little or not at all and one percent did not know.
But 61% of those who said the issue impacted their vote described themselves as left-wing on the Palestinian issue, so chances are they were not considering voting Likud. Of those who said the housing issue would have little to no impact on their vote, 63% called themselves right-wing.
Despite the survey being conducted while reports about the comptroller's report dominated the news, the percentage of Israelis saying they want Netanyahu to remain prime minister rose from 40% last week to 42%. The percentage saying they do not want him to keep his job also rose, from 40% to 45%, while the percentage saying they did not know fell from 15% to eight percent.
There were no significant changes in mandates predicted for the parties. The poll found that the Zionist Union's lead over Likud remained two seats, 25 to 23. The Joint (Arab) List would win 13 seats, Yesh Atid 12, Bayit Yehudi 11, Koolanu eight, seven each for Shas and United Torah Judaism, five each for Meretz and Yisrael Beytenu and four for Yahad. Sixteen percent of respondents called themselves undecided.
The poll questions, which were written by Ma'ariv columnist Ben Caspit, asked whether respondents would vote differently if the Likud were led by someone else other than Netanyahu. It found that the party would do about the same if it were led by President Reuven Rivlin or Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat. If former interior minister Gideon Sa'ar led Likud, both the party and Zionist Union would win 24 seats.
The poll of 576 respondents representing a statistical sample of the adult Israeli population had a margin of error of +- 4.2%.