US President Donald Trump has claimed that his endorsement helped boost Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s performance in the country’s October 27 general election, saying the race had become closer than expected.
Trump made the claim in a post on his Truth Social platform on Wednesday, October 28, quoting Irving C. Schwartz, who said the president’s endorsement had shifted the momentum in Netanyahu’s favour.
Schwartz argued that what had initially appeared to be a decisive defeat for Netanyahu had turned into a possible stalemate or victory following Trump’s backing.
Speaking to reporters near Air Force One, Trump said Netanyahu had performed better than anticipated, despite earlier exit polls suggesting a difficult contest for the Israeli leader.
“I heard the poll numbers were wrong … the exit polls; I heard he did very well. It was pretty close, but very well. When the endorsement went out, it helped him a lot,” Trump said.
The US president added that Israeli officials had told him Netanyahu had done much better than expected, although he acknowledged that it was too early to determine the final outcome.
The election is expected to shape the composition of Israel’s next Knesset and determine whether Netanyahu can secure enough support to form a governing coalition.