A short video of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking on a runway March 25 as he prepared to return to Israel from Washington highlights the concern he felt about losing control of his election campaign. Journalists tailed Netanyahu as he walked with his wife Sara toward the stairs to his plane, eager to get an update or a comment on Israel’s military strike in Gaza. The problem for Netanyahu was that earlier that day, a rocket fired from Gaza had hit a home in Mishmeret, a village in the center of Israel, striking fear among every Israeli.

Netanyahu was frustrated that he had to cut his festive visit to Washington short. He raged at the journalists that from his perspective, they had not given sufficient coverage to President Donald Trump’s announcement recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. “People will settle the score with you for not giving it more than a minute of coverage,” Netanyahu warned. “But historically, this was huge.” It was only after the reporters pleaded with him that he agreed to make some general comments about Gaza.

Up to that point, Netanyahu’s election campaign had met all its objectives despite the various criminal investigations into his dealings. He had prepared for the election for about a year. Netanyahu was convinced that the investigations would end with his indictment, so he primed his supporters accordingly, claiming that the various law enforcement agencies were conspiring to build a case against him. He even went so far as to try to delegitimize the country's police commissioner and the attorney general, both of whom he had appointed. The strategy worked.

After Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit announced on Feb. 28 that he was considering indicting the prime minister for bribery, fraud and violation of trust, Netanyahu barely took a hit in the polls. He believed that his campaign was in control of the situation, while the rival Blue and White party was declining in popularity due to problems with its campaign strategy. At that exact moment, however, anything that could go wrong for Netanyahu actually did.