Prime Minister Ron Huldai and Orna Barbibai Top Tel Aviv Mayoral Race, Survey Shows
According to a survey conducted among the residents of Tel Aviv-Yafo, current Mayor Ron Huldai and former minister Orna Barbibai are the two leading candidates in the race for mayor. The survey, published on Friday in “Olan Shishi,” showed that Huldai leads with 29% support among the entire sample examined, while Barbibai follows closely behind with 22%. Tzipi Brand, former deputy mayor of Tel Aviv, secured third place with 8% support.
The survey also revealed interesting insights when it comes to the different neighborhoods in Tel Aviv. Huldai leads in most neighborhoods, except for the south, where the battle becomes close. In the north of the city, Huldai leads with 30% support, followed by Barbibai with 22%. In the city center, Huldai has 33% support, while Barbibai follows with 25%. In the south of the city, Huldai leads with 26%, slightly ahead of Barbibai with 25% support.
The survey also analyzed voting preferences based on housing status. Among those who own apartments, Huldai leads with 34%, compared to Barbibai with 21%. However, among those who live in rented apartments, the gap between the two candidates narrows to only 1%, with Huldai receiving 24% support and Barbibai receiving 23%.
Despite the close competition between Huldai and Barbibai, the majority of residents believe that Huldai will win the upcoming mayoral elections. 57% of the total sample believe that Huldai will emerge victorious, while only 9% think that Barbibai will win. When asked about their satisfaction with Huldai’s performance, the survey showed that 50% are satisfied, while 47% are dissatisfied.
The survey also asked participants about their stance on Huldai running for mayor again. 37% are in favor of his candidacy, while 45% are against it. 18% responded with “don’t know.”
In addition to the mayoral race, the survey also touched upon the ongoing Netanyahu trial. When asked about the handling of the trial, 39% of the respondents believed that it should continue until its conclusion and the judges’ verdict. There was no significant difference in opinion between voters of the Netanyahu bloc and voters of the anti-Netanyahu bloc.
27% of the respondents advocated for a plea deal that would require Netanyahu to leave political life, while 21% believed a plea deal should be reached that allows Netanyahu to continue as prime minister. Among Netanyahu’s supporters, 39% supported this plea deal, while only 4% of his opponents agreed.
The survey also questioned participants about their views on public figures receiving gifts from businessmen with whom they are friends. 64% of the total sample responded that it was “not appropriate,” while 20% believed it was “appropriate.” Among Netanyahu’s supporters, 43% found it “not appropriate,” compared to 6% of those who oppose him.
Regarding the conduct of the police and prosecutor’s office in filing charges against Netanyahu, 41% of the respondents believed they acted in a matter-of-fact manner, while 42% thought they behaved in a non-matter-of-fact manner.
Lastly, the survey asked participants about their support or opposition to former Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Reserve Major General Yair Golan’s call for non-violent protests against the judicial system reform. The results showed that 32% were in total support, while 52% were opposed.
The survey, conducted via the internet, had a total of 502 respondents and a maximum sampling error of 4.4%.