The Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, has left a deep mark on the way Israel’s younger generation is shaping its political views.
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Some 550,000 young people will vote for the first time this month. A poll by Israeli television’s Channel 12 shows that 74 percent describe themselves as right-wing or center-right voters, while security ranks above the economy and peace.
For 18-year-old Amihai, the October 27 election is not about financial prospects, but about continuing to live in his country. Speaking to AFP, he says: “I am not voting for whoever will help me buy an apartment in ten years, but for whoever guarantees that I will still be alive here.”
Amihai, who is attending a rally in support of Jewish settlements in Gaza, says he backs the ultranationalist party of National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
He belongs to a generation shaped during Benjamin Netanyahu’s years in government. Analyst Dahlia Scheindlin believes that the shift among young Israeli Jews toward the right began to consolidate around two decades ago.
Unlike older generations, who still remember hopes for a peace agreement with the Palestinians, many young people see that possibility as increasingly remote.
However, not all young people follow the same political direction. Eighteen-year-old Gili supports center-left Democrats and believes that the fear caused by Hamas’s attack has made society more radical and more skeptical of peace.
Yuval, her peer, also supports a political agreement with the Palestinians. “Managing the conflict is not a solution,” he says, hoping for a future in which young people will have the opportunity to build their lives.
