Is Israel's popular justice minister a threat to Netanyahu?
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu surely took note of the latest polls indicating Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked of HaBayit HaYehudi has become extremely popular within his own Likud Party.
It was only a matter of time before one of Israel's media outlets would raise the gauntlet and look into how popular Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked would be as head of the Likud Party. On July 13, Maariv released the results of a dramatic poll, which indicated that if she headed the ruling party, she would win as many seats as the current party chair, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — 33 Knesset seats.
Even if the results have no practical meaning, they grant the young minister from HaBayit HaYehudi the title of "the most popular politician in Israel" after Netanyahu, who is now at the peak of his public and political power.
