US President Donald Trump endorsed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, a long-withheld backing that landed in the final stretch of Netanyahu's reelection campaign ahead of Israel's October 27 vote.

What Trump said

Writing on social media, Trump credited Netanyahu with having "a Great Warrior Prime Minister" record and being "an even greater Partner for Peace in combating the Islamic Republic of Iran". He described the prime minister as "Strong, Brave, and Brilliant in the face of tremendous opposition, including that coming from even Israel, itself".

The post carried a warning aimed at Tehran and at Israeli voters alike. Trump threatened to "soon finish the job" against Iran "unless they change their ways, rapidly", and suggested the United States might not confront Iran under a different Israeli leader, saying America would have to do the work itself and that he was not inclined to do so.

Why the endorsement had been delayed

Trump had withheld his backing for months as the vote approached and the two leaders' strategies in the Middle East diverged. The frictions centered on the war with Iran and the Gaza ceasefire plan:

• •Israel and the United States jointly launched the war against Iran in February, and the ceasefire proposal fell short of both countries' key goals.
• •After joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities in 2025 the two appeared more aligned than ever, but they clashed during the nearly eight-month war with Iran this year.
• •Trump criticized Israel's attack on a key Iranian gas field in the war's first weeks, and in June he called Netanyahu "crazy".
• •He said he was "a little bit perturbed" that Israel's fighting with Hezbollah militants in Lebanon was holding back peace talks with Iran.
• •In August, Netanyahu rejected Trump's latest plan to advance the stalled ceasefire in Gaza, resisting the US call for Israel to withdraw from territory it controls until Hamas has been disarmed.

Netanyahu's response

Netanyahu thanked Trump in a Hebrew statement posted on X: "Thank you, President Trump, for the tremendous support and work together ... Together we will complete the mission!". His Likud Party attached a 35-second video showing clips of the two leaders together and of Trump praising Netanyahu.

Netanyahu's main rival, former military chief Gadi Eisenkot, responded at a Tel Aviv conference that he admires Trump but told the audience, "Israel is a democratic country: only Israelis can choose their leader".

A tight race after October 7

Israelis vote on October 27 in the first national elections since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, and the race is expected to be tight. Trump remains popular in Israel, but many Israelis have voiced disappointment over the inconclusive outcome of the Iran war and his ceasefire proposal.

Trump has weighed into foreign elections before:

• •He backed Netanyahu in past elections, and in November he sent a letter to Israeli President Isaac Herzog asking him to pardon Netanyahu on corruption charges.
• •In a Time magazine interview published this month, he said of backing Netanyahu, "I'm not involved in politics anymore".
• •He has also endorsed foreign candidates elsewhere, including Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in his unsuccessful bid for a fifth term, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, and Polish President Karol Nawrocki.

Israelis head to the polls on October 27 in the first national election since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, with the race expected to be tight.