Comprehensive Survey of Political Opinion among the Arab Public

Main Findings:

• The Arab public has given the government an overall score of less-than-average (2.37 on a scale of 1 to 5). The level of confidence among Arab citizens with respect to the government plan to fight crime in Arab towns is very low (2.13 on a scale of 1 to 5) and similarly for the implementation of the new five-year plan (2022–26) for the economic development of Arab society (2.29 on a scale of 1 to 5).
   
• Although the government coalition includes an Arab party (Ra’am) and Arab members of the Jewish parties, the Arab public does not hang much hope on this situation benefiting its economic situation, its feeling of personal security or the resolution of planning and building problems in the Arab towns, nor will it increase the representation of Arabs in the civil service or improve relations between Arabs and Jews. At the same time, 40.5 percent of the respondents feel that this development will lead to an increase in voter participation among Arabs in the next elections while only 22.7 percent feel that voter participation is liable to decline.
   
• One-half (51 percent) of the respondents feel that the current coalition will not last for four full years until the next elections. Only 29.1 percent feel that the current government will indeed last to the end of its term.
   
• Most of the respondents (56.2 percent) are of the opinion that Ra’am should demand a ministerial position in the government (a minister or deputy minister) rather than just being part of the coalition. Only 14.4 percent support Ra’am’s decision to join the coalition without demanding a ministerial position and 15.5 percent are convinced that Ra’am should not have joined the coalition at all.
   
• A large majority of the respondents (71.4 percent) support the idea of the Joint List (Hadash, Ta’al and Balad) reuniting with Ra’am. Only 23.7 percent do not support the idea.
   
• As a result of the violent events in May, 51.8 percent of the respondents feel that relations between Arabs and Jews in the country worsened significantly.
   
• A year after the signing of the Abraham Accords, the Arab public is divided on the question of whether it will contribute to political stability in the Middle East. Most of the respondents (63.2 percent) feel that it will not help bring about a peace settlement between Israel and the Palestinians. In contrast, 55.8 percent of the respondents believe that the normalization agreements are a positive development for Arab citizens of Israel.
   
• Opinion is divided among the Arab public with regard to a realistic solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: 23.7 percent believe in a two-state solution based on the 1967 ceasefire lines; 26 percent believe in a one-state solution with a single Palestinian-Jewish state from the Mediterranean to the Jordan River; and 37.9 percent believe that there is no solution on the horizon and that the situation will remain unchanged.
   
• 61.1 percent of the respondents said that if the Knesset elections were held today they would vote while 32.9 percent said they would not. After weighting the responses, the rate of voter participation would be 49 percent.
   
• One-half of the respondents (54.2 percent) feel that President Yitzhak Herzog displays little understanding of the problems of Arab society. Only 12.1 percent feel that he shows a great deal of understanding.