“How can we survive as a democratic nation?” This is the question posed by Dr. Amnon Cavari during his April 7th seminar at the University of Michigan. Dr Cavari is the head of the Institute for Liberty and Responsibility at the Lauder School of Government of Reichman University. Faith of Israeli citizens in their government is dwindling. From unpopular judicial reforms passed in January of 2023 to the taxing Gaza War following October 7, dissatisfaction among citizens is on the rise. Democracy in Israel faces significant challenges and ongoing erosion.
Israeli citizens’ belief in the ability of their government to protect them is shockingly low, as 55% fear for their own security. Moreover, 44% believe Israel is under an existential threat. This begs the question of whether democracy, along with Israel as a whole, is under attack.
In January 2023, a power grab occurred in the form of judicial reform. The Supreme Court’s power to cancel government decisions that are deemed “extremely unreasonable” was revoked. Dr. Cavari characterized the response by Israelis as the “democratic spring.” The response to the reforms culminated in the longest and strongest public demonstrations against the Israeli government in history. The recent push for judicial reforms and subsequent protests coincide with decreasing Israeli optimism in democracy, as faith in the system dropped from 50% in April 2019 to 30% in March 2023 (these figures were before the beginning of the war with Hamas). The reform would also allow for judicial appointments to be political, like the system here in the United States. As such, Israel is now classified as an electoral democracy instead of a liberal democracy.
However, this was all before the largest war in Israeli history.
On October 7th, 2023, Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups attacked Israel, killing roughly 1,200 and taking another 250 hostage. Among Israeli citizens, there is a large dissatisfaction with the war, with the plurality seeing Hamas as the victor, according to Dr. Cavari. Moreover, the vast majority of citizens believe that if they were to be taken hostage, they do not believe they would be rescued. This marks a step backwards for progress in Israel, “since then we see an erosion of what we gained. That erosion is saddening”. Some examples of erosion include support for limiting freedom of critics of Israel, preventing public activities of Israeli critical organizations, and limiting the right to vote to only citizens who swear an oath. Moreover, disagreement over equal rights protection jumped to over 50% after October 7th.
Furthermore, polarization among Israeli citizens is increasing. Affective polarization, the gap between individuals’ positive feelings toward their own political party and negative feelings toward the opposing party, is increasing. This is dangerous for Israel as hardliners can further the erosion plaguing the Israeli government, and its support with the citizens. Dr. Cavari notes that affective polarization increases each time Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu is on the ballot, stating, “All of his rhetoric is us against them”. Moreover, in these elections, “people are willing to sacrifice democratic norms if their candidate wins”. This trend paints a bleak future for Israel’s democracy if it continues.
The war in Gaza has only furthered the polarization in Israel. The concept of “rallying around the flag”, a surge of public approval for the president when the nation is involved in an international crisis, is a growing sentiment amongst Israeli citizens. The hardening of political lines and support for the current administration is a worrying sight for democracy in Israel.
Dr. Amnon Cavari paints a bleak picture of Israel’s future and its democracy if trends are to be continued. The decreased faith in the government to not only be a protector, but also a rescuer of its citizens, leaves the citizens dissatisfied. The survival of Israel as a democracy relies on the confidence and, most importantly, support of the Israeli citizens.
