A massive 78 percent of supporters of Likud among Israelis favor Premier Menachem Begin, as do nearly 16 percent of supporters of the Labor Party, according to results of the latest public opinion poll in The Jerusalem Post. Begin is the choice of 42 percent of the Israeli electorate overall.
The runner-up in popularity among Israelis is former Air Force commander Ezer Weizman, who is favored by 8.7 percent. Only 3.2 percent of Likud supporters favor him while he was favored by 14.5 percent among Labor voters — about the some proportion from Labor supporting Begin as Likud leader.
Asked for their preferences among Labor Party leaders, the respondents gave former Premier Yitzhak Rabin first place, with an overall preference vote of 39.6 percent. This included nearly 37 percent among Likud supporters and 47.5 percent among Labor supporters.
Former President Yitzhak Navon took second place in overall popularity with 23.5 percent, which included preference from 34.4. percent among Likud supporters and 12.9 percent among Labor backers. Navon was followed by Labor Party leader Shimon Peres, who won a low overall preference vote of 6.9 percent, which included 13.6 percent among Likud supporters and 12.5 percent among Labor supporters.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
