President Donald Trump endorsed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for reelection Sunday, giving his longtime ally a public boost just nine days before Israelis head to the polls.
Trump posted a lengthy endorsement on Truth Social, praising Netanyahu’s leadership during the war with Iran and making it abundantly clear whom he wants leading Israel after October 27.
“Bibi Netanyahu has been a Great Warrior Prime Minister, and an even greater Partner for Peace in combatting the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Trump wrote.
He credited Netanyahu with helping confront Tehran, arguing that Iran’s military and financial capabilities had been systematically destroyed. Trump also had a warning for Israeli voters considering a change in leadership.
“If Israel has the wrong Leader, which would be anyone other than Bibi, America will have to do this work ourselves, and I am not inclined to do so.”
Not exactly a subtle endorsement.
Trump went on to praise Netanyahu for holding firm despite intense domestic opposition and the pressures of war. He closed with a direct appeal to Israelis.
“Please let this Letter serve to represent my Complete and Total Endorsement of Bibi Netanyahu in his upcoming Race for Re-Election as Prime Minister of Israel. BIBI NETANYAHU WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!”
Netanyahu was quick to respond, thanking Trump in a post on X and sharing a video of the two leaders together.
“Thank you, President Trump, for the tremendous support and the job well done,” Netanyahu wrote. “Together we will complete the mission!”
The endorsement comes as Netanyahu faces a difficult election against former Israeli military chief Gadi Eisenkot, whose Yashar party has overtaken Likud in several recent polls.
A survey published Thursday projected Yashar winning 26 seats in the 120-member Knesset, compared with 20 for Netanyahu’s Likud. The Jewish-led opposition bloc was projected to win 54 seats, while Netanyahu and his allies were projected to win 49.
Neither side reached the 61 seats needed to form a majority.
A separate Channel 13 survey released October 14 offered Netanyahu slightly better news. His bloc led Eisenkot’s 51 to 50, although both remained short of a parliamentary majority.
That leaves Netanyahu fighting to preserve his governing coalition after one of the most consequential periods in Israel’s history.
The October 27 election will be Israel’s first since the October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attacks. Netanyahu has since overseen military operations in Gaza and Lebanon, along with the joint U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran that began in February.
Trump has repeatedly praised Netanyahu’s handling of Iran, although the two governments have also faced disagreements over the direction of the conflict.
Sunday’s endorsement leaves little doubt about which Israeli leader Trump trusts to finish the job.
Whether it translates into additional seats for Likud is less certain. Israeli voters have their own concerns, and Netanyahu still faces the difficult business of putting together a governing majority.
For now, the American president has him firmly in his corner. And Trump made sure Israelis knew it.
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