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<\/a><\/p>\nUS President Donald Trump welcomes Israeli prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in Washington D.C., April 7, 2025. (Liri Agami\/Flash90)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
With polls showing that Netanyahu and his governing coalition are slipping in their struggle to retain power in the upcoming Oct. 27 election and lag behind the opposition bloc, an endorsement from the president of the United States is a powerful statement.<\/p>\n
But is it enough to tip the scales?<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think it will change anything,\u201d said Ilana Shpaizman, a senior lecturer in the Department of Political Studies at Bar-Ilan University.<\/p>\n
Of course, she said, \u201cNetanyahu will say this is the proof that I\u2019m a leader and all that, and I can speak to Trump \u2026 But so what? His followers already know that and they believe in him. They don\u2019t need the endorsement.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those who oppose him, Shpaizman continued, \u201cknow that Trump forced him (Netanyahu) to accept the ceasefire in Gaza and accept the hostage deal, and that Trump runs the show around Iran. So they also don\u2019t need the endorsement either,\u201d Shpaizman said.<\/p>\n
Some pundits speaking on Israeli news outlets criticized Trump for \u201cinterfering\u201d in Israel\u2019s election, while others put it down to the fact that Trump does not want America to return to fighting Iran alone if Netanyahu, who is hawkish on Iran, is replaced by someone less willing to act militarily. If Netanyahu loses, that is a scenario that could play out.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the first time ever that the president, at least publicly, endorses a candidate in Israel\u2019s election,\u201d Bushinsky, a political commentator and former adviser to Netanyahu, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.<\/p>\n
Bushinsky said he remembered Netanyahu complaining about U.S. intervention in previous elections in 1999 and 2001, when presidents less enamored of him were in office. He even pushed for an initiative that would block foreign funding for election campaigns.<\/p>\n
Now, Bushinsky said, \u201cI guess he is not complaining,\u201d adding that the endorsement serves Netanyahu in two ways.<\/p>\n
First, it signals that Trump thinks that Netanyahu is the most suitable guy for the job. Second, it puts Netanyahu\u2019s election campaign back on track, refocusing attention on an issue where Netanyahu is strong \u2013 Iran.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt lets him say \u2018I can now finish a job, and I can finish a job with Trump,\u2019 and \u2018without Trump or without me, the job will not be finished,\u2019\u201d said Bushinsky.<\/p>\n
He said that in the last few days, the political debate had pivoted to other issues such as Ashkenazim vs Sephardim, the draft law and the contentious efforts by the outgoing government to overhaul the judiciary.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis [endorsement] is the ultimate campaign boost for Netanyahu,\u201d Bushinsky said.<\/p>\n
But that boost might not be enough.<\/p>\n