Former Likud minister Gideon Sa'ar is the only politician in Israel who could really pose a threat to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's leadership, a new poll has revealed. The Panels Politics poll, published in Maariv on Sunday, placed a slate of candidates "head to head" against Netanyahu, asking respondents to choose who they preferred to lead Israel in the coming years. Sa'ar, on an extended break from politics, garnered only 5% less support than the Prime Minister in their race, with 29 percent of respondents picking Sa'ar versus 34 percent choosing Netanyahu. Some 37 percent were undecided. Other results in the survey included: Netanyahu with 45% versus Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon with 18% Netanyahu with 48% versus Yesh Atid chairman Yair Lapid with 24% Netanyahu with 52% versus Labor chairman Yitzhak Herzog with 25% Netanyahu with 45% versus former IDF chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi with 18% Netanyahu with 43% compared with Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon with 13% According to Yedioth Ahronoth, another survey published on Friday revealed interesting facts about a possible confrontation between Netanyahu and Sa'ar. While Netanyahu trumped Sa'ar 72% to 21% among Likud voters, Sa'ar won among the general Israeli public with 40% of support compared to Netanyahu's 37%.
