Archive · 14 Aug 2026
Trump Avoids Endorsing Netanyahu Four Times as Israel Election Nears
There is an important election happening in Israel soon, on October 27.
The leader of Israel right now is a man named Benjamin Netanyahu.
He wants to win the election and keep his job.
His friend, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, is very popular in Israel.
Netanyahu hopes his friend will say nice things about him to help him win.
But Trump has been asked four times if he supports Netanyahu, and he has not said yes.
Trump is worried because the polls show Netanyahu might lose.
Trump also feels frustrated with some of Netanyahu's decisions and policies.
Other Israeli leaders are asking Trump to stay out of the election and not pick a side.
So Trump is being very careful and staying quiet for now.
Donald Trump has avoided endorsing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on four separate occasions in recent weeks, including when asked by radio host Hugh Hewitt in July.
Israel's election is scheduled for October 27, leaving 75 days before voters go to the polls.
Polls project Netanyahu's coalition will win 49-53 seats, far below the 68 it currently holds and the 61 needed to form a government.
Opposition parties are projected to win between 67 and 70 seats, and Netanyahu's main rival, former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot, holds higher favourability ratings in most polls.
Netanyahu's opponents, including Eizenkot, Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, have urged Trump through intermediaries to remain neutral in the election.
Tensions between Trump and Netanyahu have grown over the Iran war and Netanyahu's public rejection of Trump's Gaza Board of Peace plan, though he later agreed to give the plan a chance.
Trump's Gaza agenda includes advancing the peace plan, progress between Israel and Lebanon, a security agreement with Syria, and a peace deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
- Who
- US President Donald Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Netanyahu's political rivals including Gadi Eizenkot, Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid.
- What
- Trump has repeatedly avoided endorsing Netanyahu ahead of Israel's election, as Netanyahu faces an uphill battle in the polls and their relationship has grown strained.
- When
- With 75 days left before Israel's October 27 election, as of the article's August 14, 2026 publication.
- Where
- Israel and the United States, including a meeting between Trump and Netanyahu at the Oval Office two weeks earlier.
- Why
- Netanyahu's weak polling numbers and differences between the two leaders over Iran, Lebanon, Gaza and Trump's Gaza peace plan have made Trump reluctant to endorse him.
Netanyahu's opponents seek Trump's neutrality
Netanyahu seeks Trump's endorsement
Trump's role in the Israeli election
Netanyahu's opponents seek Trump's neutrality
Netanyahu's political rivals, including Gadi Eizenkot, Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, sent messages to Trump and his advisers through mutual friends and donors asking him to remain neutral, fearing an endorsement could boost Netanyahu's campaign.
Netanyahu seeks Trump's endorsement
Netanyahu has been seeking Trump's endorsement, with his advisers telling Trump in the Oval Office that he is winning, despite polls showing his coalition projected to win only 49-53 seats.
US involvement in Israeli politics
Netanyahu's opponents seek Trump's neutrality
Opposition figures see Trump's neutrality as important for a fair election, with a former US official suggesting Netanyahu's weak polling numbers may have discouraged Trump from getting involved.
Netanyahu seeks Trump's endorsement
Trump's team remains invested in Israel's political outcome to advance his regional agenda, wary of a repeat of Israel's 2019 political crisis that triggered three elections and cost a year of Middle East diplomacy.
- Israel election date
- October 27 (75 days away)
- Netanyahu coalition projected seats
- 49-53 seats (needs 61 to form a government)
- Opposition projected seats
- 67-70 seats
- Times Trump avoided endorsement
- 4
- Trump-Netanyahu meeting
- Oval Office two weeks before publication
- Main rival
- Former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot
- Key dispute
- Netanyahu's rejection of Trump's Gaza Board of Peace plan for disarming Hamas
- Trump quote on Netanyahu
- "Bibi is his own worst enemy"