Most Israeli Arabs support non-military civic service and coalition participation, poll shows

Three out of four Arab citizens of Israel support voluntary non-military civic service for Arab high school graduates.

A similarly large majority believe Arab political parties should join the next governing coalition, according to a new survey released this week by Tel Aviv University.

The findings, presented by the Moshe Dayan Centre in collaboration with the Konrad Adenauer Program for Jewish-Arab Cooperation at the Tel Aviv Conference on Tuesday, point to what researchers describe as a continuing shift in political and civic attitudes within Israeli Arab society, even after more than two years of war.

Dr Arik Rudnitzky, director of the Konrad Adenauer Program, told The Press Service of Israel the results reflect a broader transformation that predates the current conflict.

“I would say that perhaps paradoxically, because of this prolonged war, we would have expected some kind of escalation, crisis or disappointment with the state from the Arab population,” he said. “This shows us there is a change here whose roots go back to before the war. But the war proved the change. What stands out here is the desire to join the government and, secondly, the principled support for civic service for Arab high school graduates.”

According to the survey, 75.8 per cent of Israeli Arabs support voluntary non-military civic service for Arab boys and girls after high school. Nearly half, 46.9 per cent, expressed strong support, while only 23.2 per cent opposed the idea.

Support was found across age groups and genders, including among younger respondents aged 18 to 34, where nearly 70 per cent supported the concept.

Rudnitzky said many Israeli Arabs appear to view civic service through a practical lens.

“A possible explanation is that once people hear about it, they calculate what comes out of it for them,” he said. “From the perspective of Arab society, finding a solution for young people after high school, who do not have the natural track of military or national service, can definitely be a good opportunity with advantages that outweigh its disadvantages.”

The survey also found record support for political integration. More than 77 per cent of respondents said an Arab party should join the government formed after the next elections. Of those, 43.3 per cent supported joining any government, while 33.9 per cent favoured joining a centre-left coalition specifically.

Rudnitzky said the findings continue a trend observed over the past two years, reflecting growing support among Israeli Arabs for direct political influence within the Israeli system.

“Arab Israelis realise it is not enough to sit in the Knesset plenum,” he said.

The study also examined possible electoral scenarios. If elections were held today, Arab voter turnout would stand at around 53 per cent, similar to the 2022 elections. Under that scenario, Arab parties Hadash-Ta’al and Ra’am would pass the electoral threshold, while Balad would not.

However, the survey found that if the four main Arab parties reunited under the Joint List framework, turnout could jump to a record 67 per cent, potentially giving the alliance more than 16 seats in the 120-member Knesset.

Beyond politics, the survey pointed to shifting priorities within Arab society itself.

Only 8 per cent of respondents identified the Palestinian issue as the most important issue facing Israeli Arabs today. By contrast, more than 71 per cent said violence and crime in Arab communities were the central concern.

The survey also found that 53.3 per cent of respondents reported a strong sense of belonging to the state of Israel, while Arab identity remained the strongest component of personal identity overall, followed by Israeli citizenship and religion.

“All in all, we see the rising willingness of the Arab population to participate in certain Israeli frameworks,” Rudnitzky said.