‘Generation Right’: Israeli youth show strong support for the right

Some three quarters of Jewish first-time voters identify as right or centre-right, higher than rest of Israeli society. Poll shows some three quarters of Jewish first-time voters identify as right or centre-right, higher than the rest of Israeli society. The first Israeli elections in four years have brought with them a record number of first-time voters – most of whom are keen to make their voices count. But while youth around the world are leaning to the left, young adults in Israel are heading in the opposite direction, according to recent polls. The Israeli Central Elections Committee says more than half a million voters were added to the roll since the last elections in 2022.

They are aged between 18 and 22 and polls show that 80 percent of them plan to vote in the October 27 legislative election. Although their political activism and engagement in the public sphere are limited, a survey by the think tank, Israel Democracy Institute (IDI), found that a majority of young Jewish Israelis feel that the ballot box can influence reality and shape their country’s future. But what does the future they hope for look like? Around three quarters of Jewish first-time voters polled identified as “right or centre-right”, according to a recent poll for Israel’s Channel 12. That’s significantly higher than the rest