US President Donald Trump on October 19 publicly expressed support for incumbent Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is heading into a tight race in the parliamentary election scheduled for October 27.
In a post on the social media platform Truth Social, Trump praised the Israeli leader as a Washington ally in the fight against Iran and declared his "complete and total support" for Netanyahu.
"BIBI NETANYAHU WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!" the US president wrote.
The move comes nine days before the election, following a period of speculation that Trump might not issue any endorsement. Earlier this month, asked repeatedly in an interview with Time magazine about Netanyahu's job performance, Trump declined to take a position, instead steering toward topics such as his own approval ratings and Middle East security.
The two leaders have met more than half a dozen times since January 2025, but reports of friction have also surfaced, including over the war with Iran and other conflicts. In June, Trump acknowledged he had called Netanyahu "crazy" during a phone call while expressing displeasure over Israeli strikes on Lebanon. According to sources, Trump at the time asked Netanyahu not to take further action in Lebanon, apparently to preserve a short-lived April ceasefire with Iran.
The two leaders jointly launched the war against Iran on February 28, but the conflict has steadily eroded Trump's domestic support. The fighting has disrupted global oil and gas supplies and shows no clear sign of ending.
A Pew Research Center survey published this month found that about two-thirds of American voters disapprove of Trump's handling of the war, amid high consumer fuel prices and concerns about depleted military stockpiles.
Trump's Republican Party is heading toward crucial midterm elections on November 3, a vote that will determine whether it retains control of the US Congress along with numerous state and local offices.
Analysts suggest Trump's earlier reluctance to back Netanyahu may have stemmed from public perception that Israel may have drawn the US into the war.
Netanyahu's Likud party and the right-wing coalition risk defeat in the October election against an opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot, head of the Yashar party.
In his October 19 endorsement statement, Trump said it was only a matter of time before Iran attacks both the US and Israel. According to the US president, the war has left Iran "systematically destroyed, both militarily and financially, and if they don't change their behavior quickly, we will soon finish the job."
"If Israel has the wrong leader, meaning anyone other than Bibi, America will have to do this itself, and I have no intention of doing that," Trump wrote. "Bibi Netanyahu has been strong, brave and excellent in the face of enormous opposition, including from within Israel itself."
