Days before the Israeli election, Trump endorses Netanyahu, breaking months of silence

US President Donald Trump on Sunday endorsed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the final stretch of his re-election campaign. The backing, arriving only days before the vote, broke months of silence during which the two leaders' strategies on the Middle East had diverged.

Because of Trump's popularity in Israel, the endorsement is a coveted boost, yet he had withheld it for months as the vote approached and the two leaders' strategies diverged. In a post on social media, Trump said Netanyahu had been a great warrior prime minister and an even greater partner for peace in combating the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Israelis are set to vote on October 27 in the first national elections since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023. Netanyahu said in a Hebrew-language statement on X: 'Thank you, President Trump, for the tremendous support and work together. Together we will complete the mission!'

The absence of an endorsement had been a blow to the Likud politician, who had billed his close ties to Trump as a selling point for staying in power. Likud attached a 35-second video to the statement, showing clips of the two leaders together and Trump praising Netanyahu.

It is not yet clear what impact the endorsement will have on a race expected to be tight. Trump has backed Netanyahu in past elections as well, and in November he wrote to Israeli President Isaac Herzog asking him to pardon Netanyahu on corruption charges.

In recent months, however, Trump's remarks about the prime minister had been far more subdued, and he repeatedly demurred when asked whether he would support him. Asked about it in a Time magazine interview published this month, Trump said he was not involved in politics anymore — even though he continues to campaign for and endorse US politicians.

Trump remains popular in Israel; however, many Israelis, including leading commentators, have voiced disappointment over the inconclusive outcome of the Iran war and over Trump's ceasefire proposal, which fell short of many of the key goals the two countries had set when they jointly launched the war in February.

In his post on Sunday, Trump again threatened that he would soon finish the job against Iran unless it changed its ways rapidly. He added that he might not want to do so if Netanyahu loses.

Trump said that if Israel had the wrong leader, which would be anyone other than Bibi, America would have to do this work itself, and that he was not inclined to do so. He described Netanyahu as strong, brave and brilliant in the face of tremendous opposition, including opposition coming from within Israel itself.

Trump and Netanyahu have long been close allies, and they appeared more aligned than ever after the joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities in 2025. Over the course of the nearly eight-month war with Iran this year, however, they have clashed.

Trump criticised Israel's decision to attack a key Iranian gas field in the first weeks of the war. In June he called Netanyahu 'crazy', and he said he was a little perturbed that Israel's fighting with Hezbollah militants in Lebanon was holding back peace talks with Iran.

On Gaza, Netanyahu in August rejected Trump's latest plan to advance a stalled ceasefire. The plan called for Israel to withdraw from territory it controls in Gaza before Hamas has been disarmed, and Netanyahu pushed back on it.

Especially in his second term, Trump has sought to put his stamp of approval on candidates in foreign elections, claiming credit when they win. He endorsed Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in his unsuccessful bid for a fifth term, as well as Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Polish President Karol Nawrocki and several Latin American leaders. The question now is whether this late endorsement can change Netanyahu's fortunes in the October 27 vote.