Former General Gadi Eisenkot Emerges as Netanyahu's Main Rival

Gadi Eisenkot, a former Israeli chief of defense, is rapidly becoming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's primary challenger as Israel braces for parliamentary elections, likely in October 2026.

Eisenkot's new centrist party, Yashar! (meaning "Straight!" in Hebrew), is surging in opinion polls, currently ranking second only to Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party. The political landscape suggests that forming a majority government could be challenging for either bloc, as Israeli coalitions typically involve multiple parties.

At 66, Eisenkot brings a distinguished military background, having served as chief of staff from 2015 to 2019. He is known as an expert on Hezbollah and is widely considered a political moderate. His stance includes opposition to the forced displacement of Gaza's population, though he has called the two-state solution "irrelevant" following the October 7 Hamas attack.

Eisenkot's personal losses in the Gaza war, where his son and two nephews were killed, resonate deeply with many Israelis. This contrasts with Netanyahu, whose son Yair has remained abroad and not served in a combat unit since the war began. Eisenkot has also been critical of the government's efforts to exempt ultra-Orthodox men from military conscription, a contentious issue in Israel.

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He expressed opposition to the displacement of the population of the Gaza Strip, although he called the idea of a two-state solution "irrelevant" after Hamas's attack on October 7.