New polling data show Israel's youth population is overwhelmingly right-leaning politically, in a stark difference from previous generations and Western countries.
A survey from the Israel Democracy Institute shows that 73% of those 18-24 years old and 75% of those 24-34 years old identify as being on the political right, with the numbers dropping as the age demographics get older, with only 46% of those 65 years old and older identifying as politically right.
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The numbers vary greatly from traditional findings in Western countries, with a 2021 Gallup poll finding only 23% of 18-29-year-olds polled identified as conservative versus the 34% who identified as liberal.
Alon Yakter, a political scientist at Tel Aviv University, told Vox he believes the relative safeness of the country during the younger generation's lifetime has contributed to the strong right-wing identity.
“This generation grew up in what most would consider the safest times [for Israelis], they grew up in the post-Intifada years, and yet they grew up the most isolated from their Palestinian neighbors,” Yakter told the outlet. “There’s so many ways that can impact a young person’s perspective on politics.”
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The strong polling numbers for right-wing identity come as protests against plans to overhaul the judicial system under Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have featured more older generations, as opposed to typical masses of young people seen in protests in the United States and other countries.