The standout story of Israel’s recent election was the sharp rise in popularity of the radical right – which delighted young religious voters.

“Things will get better now. Even better when he becomes Minister of Public Safety,” Julian, an ardent supporter of provocative politician Itamar Ben-Gvir, told campaign headquarters.

“He wants the best for Israel. He wants the terrorists to get out,” Noam said in a settlement in the occupied West Bank. “We don’t want the Arabs. They throw stones at us and take our place in Israel,” he continued, before being silenced by a party activist.

• Elections in Israel: How Radical Right Developments Could Bring Netanyahu Back to Power

Ben-Gvir, who had previously been convicted of racism in Israel, hasn’t completely changed his anti-Arab rhetoric, though he is now trying to be elected as a more traditional politician.

“It’s time for us to reclaim this country,” he said after the exit polls were released on Tuesday night (11/1).

His supporters in Jerusalem continued their new “death to terrorists” chants, sometimes adapted as “death to the Arabs”.

Other journalists and I are used to reporting on Ben-Gvir’s provocative actions in controversial occupied East Jerusalem. More than once I have seen Israel happily lead ultranationalist protesters in a Palestinian sensitive area in the Old City on Jerusalem Day.

Last month, he escalated tensions in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood by pointing guns at Palestinians during the fighting.

Now, as co-leader of the third largest party, Religious Zionism, she hopes to occupy a high-profile position in the cabinet and oversee the police.

Tzori Elmakiyes, a 17-year-old Jerusalemite, a young supporter of Ben-Gvir’s Oztma Yehudit (Jewish Power) faction, downplayed the fears of critics, saying the results were “very welcome”.

“I don’t think the opponents of Oztma Yehudit should be worried because at the end of the day the party’s interest is the people and country of Israel.”

end of stalemate

Speaking to Likud party followers, Benjamin Netanyahu smiled as he predicted he would return a year after he was dramatically ousted as prime minister by a broad coalition of his opponents.

The people want a government that predicts “strength, not weakness,” while its voice is muted by the campaign. It was answered with chants of “Rei Bibi”, the nickname used by fans.

As expected, if the final election results confirm that the veteran leader can now form a stable majority government with his ultranationalist and ultra-Orthodox Jewish allies, that would end nearly four years of unprecedented political stalemate.

The country is deeply divided over the corruption charges that Netanyahu continues to face trial. He has always denied any wrongdoing, accusing his opponents of committing a political witch hunt.

“This is a man who doesn’t give up. No matter how bad he looks and how disgraceful he is by leaving the prime minister,” says researcher Mitchell Barak.

He suggests that Netanyahu has benefited from the passage of time.

“Those who wanted to punish him did,” he said, adding that they may have lost the “stability” that Netanyahu believed he represented.

left fall

There are still many Israelis who look at the country differently.

Overnight in Tel Aviv, current interim prime minister Yair Lapid, addressing the Yesh Atid (There Is A Future) party, insisted that Israelis want this policy to be “free from incitement to hatred.”

However, his experience of forming an ideologically diverse coalition of right-wing, centrist, left-wing and Arab parties was short-lived.

His tenure has been the deadliest year for Israelis and Palestinians since 2015 due to increased violence. However, his government continued to show little interest in ways to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

This was disappointing for Haggai Mattar, editor of the progressive journal +972.

These election results also led to a further decline in support for Israel’s left-wing parties.

“Israelis of the Left now need to stop for a moment and think about how we got into this situation,” Mattar says, horrified.

“The left needs a refresh or rethink – new attitudes,” he continues. “But it could also be a terrible accident that will take us a long time to recover.”

But Haaretz journalist Anshel Pfeffer says the recent elections only reveal an already clear trend.

“There is an internal identity or culture war in Israel between what some people see as the more liberal and open sides of Israeli society and the more religious and extremist sides of Israel and Jewish society,” he notes.

This isn’t really new, but (Netanyahu) has now really expanded it for his own political purposes.”

Netanyahu has succeeded in capitalizing on the shift to the right that I have observed over the last 10 years taking up politics here. Now the ultra-nationalists have gained power and it can be difficult to control them.

– This text was published at https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/internacional-63495033.