JERUSALEM

Corruption charges against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have done little to affect his popularity in the run-up to next month’s elections, according to the results of an opinion survey published Friday by Israeli daily Israel Hayom.

Only 12 percent of respondents reportedly said that their opinion of Netanyahu had been affected by Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit’s recent decision to indict the PM on bribery, corruption and breach of trust charges.

At the same time, 75 percent of respondents said Mandelblit’s decision had not affected their opinion of the prime minister, while the remaining 13 percent said they were “not sure”.

According to the same survey, 42 percent of respondents said they preferred Netanyahu as prime minister, while 38 percent said they would prefer Benny Gantz, leader of Israel’s Blue and White list.

“If elections were held today,” the survey found, “Netanyahu’s Likud party would win only 26 Knesset seats, while the Blue and White list led by Benny Gantz and Yair Lapid would win 33.”

The survey went on to predict that smaller parties would win more assembly seats at the expense of larger ones, with Shas winning four seats and United Torah Judaism winning eight.

The Arab Movement for Change led by Ahmed Tibi and the Democratic Front for Peace and Equality led by Ayman Odeh would win eight seats each, the same survey found.