The Jerusalem Post has cited officials from Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party as saying that the Israeli Prime Minister considers declaring his possible next term as his last, ahead of the country’s upcoming general election.
The newspaper also referred to a Likud internal poll which suggested that Netanyahu’s statement may help Likud gain “another mandate and give a realistic chance of reaching 61 seats for the right-religious bloc”.
The statement followed the Israeli parliament, or Knesset, adopting laws in December to dissolve and hold an early general election on 2 March 2020.
The decision came amid the ongoing political gridlock in Israel which was sparked last year, when Netanyahu's party was unable to gain the votes necessary to form a government during the elections in April and September.
In a separate development, the Israeli Prime Minister is facing criminal charges of corruption, including bribery, fraud, and breach of trust in three fraud cases.
Netanyahu, who denies any wrongdoing, insists that the process is aimed at toppling him. He has slammed the trials as "an attempted coup" against an acting Prime Minister.
Court officials recently announced that the criminal trial of Netanyahu is due to kick off on 17 March, in what may hamper his drive to stay on as Prime Minister following the elections.
