Majority of Israelis believe fourth election is imminent - poll

Amid calls for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz to form an emergency unity government to combat the novel coronavirus, a majority of Israelis believe that a fourth election is nevertheless unavoidable within the current "political plunder," a new poll published by Yisrael Hayom stated on Friday.When asked how the current political standoff will eventually be resolved, 40% of those polled said that Israel will be going to a fourth election. Other than that, 19% said that they do not know how it will be resolved, 19% believe a right-wing government will be established, and 9% believe that a minority government will be formed.The poll additionally asked which kind of government is preferred. A total of 31% of respondents said that they prefer a broad unity government, while 26% said that they want a narrow right-wing government, 17% said they want a narrow unity government and 17% said they prefer a minority left-wing government led by Blue and White with the support of the Joint List. Some 9% said that they do not know.A total of 47% of those polled by Yisrael Hayom said that they prefer Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to lead the next government while 36% prefer Blue and White leader Benny Gantz, and 17% were undecided.Netanyahu and Gantz are expected to begin negotiations for an emergency unity government amid the spread of the coronavirus, which was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization. A total of 126 Israelis tested positive for coronavirus at the time of writing, with thousands in quarantine due to the risk of contracting the virus.