Poll Shows 1 in 4 Israelis Want the Judicial Overhaul

On Friday, a new survey showed that more than 60% of the Israeli people want the government to delay or stop its efforts to dramatically overhaul the judicial system in the country.

The poll showed that when asked if the process should be postponed or stopped, 31% of the people said it should be stopped, while 31% said it should be delayed.

Another 24% said that they should move forward with it, while 14% people were unsure of what to say.

The poll

It should be noted that no details were given about the number of people polled, how they were polled as well as the margin of error.

The poll also showed that 42% of the voters of the coalition parties that make up Benjamin Netanyahu’s government were in support of delaying or stopping, while 45% wanted the process to go ahead.

On Monday, protest leaders have called for a strike all across the country and the survey showed that the action had received significant support.

28% of the respondents said they would support the strike, even though they would not participate, 31% were against it and 22% planned to participate. 19% of the respondents were unsure.

The coalition

It was surprising to find that 27% of Netanyahu’s bloc were also supportive of the strike, while 56% were against it and 17% were unsure.

The hardline coalition of the Prime Minister comprises of the far-right Religious Zionism party, which is led by the new finance minister Bezalel Smotrich.

There is also the similarly aligned Otzma Yehudit party, which is led by the new national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir.

The Haredi party Shas is headed by the health and interior minister Aryeh Deri, while the United Torah Judaism party is headed by the construction and housing minister Yitzhak Goldknopf.

Another member of the coalition is the far-right Noam faction, which is headed by Avi Maoz and known for supporting misogynistic and homophobic views.

The overhaul

With the judicial overhaul, the government plans on taking control of the judges’ appointment and limiting the ability of the High Court of striking down laws, thereby allowing Knesset to pass legislation they want.

This has drawn a considerable amount of criticism from financial executives, economists, jurists as well as leading firms.

There have also been weekly mass protests in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and a number of other cities. There will be another large protest on Saturday.

The planned strike on Monday will come as a vote has been scheduled for the Knesset committee overseeing the judicial shakeup bills in order to bring them to a first plenary reading.

A large demonstration will also be held by activities at noon outside the Knesset on Monday.

Earlier this month, a poll had shown that the gap between the political right and left in Israel has become the largest ever recorded since the survey began in 2012.

31% of the respondents said that it was likely there would be civil strife. But, the majority wants the government to strike a compromise where the legal overhaul is concerned.