Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Saturday that he will run for re-election in November 2026, expressing confidence that he will win another term in office.
Speaking during an interview on the right-wing Channel 14 network, Netanyahu was asked whether he planned to seek re-election. “Yes,” he replied. When asked if he expected to win, he responded again, “Yes.”
Netanyahu, leader of the Likud party, is Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, having spent more than 18 years in office — though not consecutively — since first taking power in 1996.
In the most recent elections, Likud secured 32 seats in the Knesset, while its ultra-Orthodox allies won 18 seats and the Religious Zionism alliance claimed 14, marking a record performance for the far-right bloc.
His current term began amid deep controversy over a proposed judicial overhaul that triggered months of mass protests across Israel, drawing tens of thousands of demonstrators into the streets almost daily.
Since the outbreak of the Gaza war, sparked by Hamas’s unprecedented attack on October 7, 2023, Netanyahu has also faced growing criticism from the families of hostages and sections of the public over his handling of the conflict.
