Netanyahu still poised for re-election despite latest criminal allegations

JERUSALEM -- Just over a month before elections, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looks more vulnerable than ever.

Following a dramatic announcement Thursday by Israel's attorney general, Netanyahu almost certainly faces indictment on corruption charges in the coming months. His main challenger leads him in the polls, and he is taking heat even from his supporters for forming an alliance with a racist ultranationalist party.

But when the dust settles after the April 9 vote, the person most likely to emerge as prime minister remains Netanyahu, thanks to a devoted base of supporters and a public tending to agree with his world view.

Still, a Netanyahu victory is far from certain, and his ability to rule effectively if he does win will be limited.

Capping an investigation that began over two years ago, Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit announced his intention Thursday to indict Netanyahu on corruption charges in a series of scandals.

The most serious charge is bribery, for allegedly promoting regulatory changes helping Shaul Elovitch, the head of telecom giant Bezeq, reap a hefty financial windfall. In exchange, Elovitch allegedly had Bezeq's popular news site, Walla, publish favorable items about Netanyahu and his family, while promoting negative coverage of some of Netanyahu's rivals.

Perhaps the most embarrassing charge involves breach of trust, for allegedly accepting some $300,000 worth of champagne and cigars as gifts from billionaire friends. The revelations reinforced Netanyahu's image as a hedonist with expensive tastes and a propensity for letting others pick up the tab.

While a sitting Israeli prime minister has never been this close to indictment before, Netanyahu is not obligated to resign at this stage. The planned indictment is still subject to a hearing, during which Netanyahu can plead his case before formal charges are filed. This process is expected to take up to a year to complete.

That means Netanyahu can continue to lead his Likud Party into elections, even with a cloud of scandal over his head.

Netanyahu, who is seeking a fourth consecutive term, faces a challenger unlike any he has seen before.

Political newcomer Benny Gantz, a popular former military chief, has surged in opinion polls with a message stressing his army background -- an essential credential in security-obsessed Israel -- along with an untarnished image.

Gantz's partnership with Yair Lapid, another popular centrist figure, has been welcomed by the public, and their new "Blue and White" alliance has jumped ahead of Likud in opinion polls.

Netanyahu has also come under heavy criticism, even from allies such as the pro-Israel lobby group AIPAC, for an alliance struck with the political heirs of the "Kach" movement, banned in Israel and the U.S. for its racist ideology.