METULA, Israel — Israelis head to the polls Tuesday facing a question that goes beyond whether Benjamin Netanyahu should remain prime minister: who can rebuild a country battered by three years of war, restore confidence in its leadership and heal the deep divisions tearing Israeli society apart?

From the struggling communities along the Lebanese border to the still-traumatized kibbutzim near Gaza, voters are weighing competing visions of Israel’s future — with some demanding greater government investment and accountability for Oct. 7, while others credit Netanyahu with delivering the military victories that have made the Jewish state safer.

“Three years of fear has changed the people and we need to give them a lot of hope,” said Asaf Lengleben, head of the Upper Galilee Regional Council, who plans to vote for the centrist Yashar party led by former IDF chief Gadi Eisenkot, the main opposition challenger to Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party.

Thousands of residents fled their homes near the Lebanese border after Hezbollah began launching attacks following Oct. 7, 2023, and many have yet to return despite the Israeli military’s success in weakening the terror group.

“People didn’t want to come back. They’re still afraid of Hezbollah,” Lengleben said. “They feel alone and they decided to leave. Some decided to leave temporarily. Others decided to leave for a long time.”

Lengleben said fewer than 1,000 families with children have returned to communities in his region since the war began.

The exodus has taken a heavy economic toll, with tourism collapsing and businesses struggling to attract customers and workers. In Kiryat Shmona, the Upper Galilee’s main urban center, shuttered storefronts and diminished school enrollment have complicated efforts to restore normal life.

“If you want to strengthen our region, you have to build us a train, you need to build infrastructure,” Lengleben said. “It’s about money. The ability of the government to assist us is about money.”

The Netanyahu government has approved reconstruction measures, including funding to transform Tel-Hai Academic College into the University of Kiryat Shmona, but Lengleben argues that more sustained investment is needed.

Daniella Porat-Penso, 59, of Kibbutz Yiftah, credits the military with dramatically improving security along the northern border, where she recalled seeing Hezbollah flags near the fence before Oct. 7.

“We had to use a significant amount of strength, of army, of funds, of manpower to push them back, and we’re not threatened now,” she said. “I feel safe.”

Still, Porat-Penso, who is weighing a vote for either Eisenkot’s centrist Yashar party or Yair Golan’s left-wing Democrats, believes new political leadership could give the region a much-needed lift.

“I think the north will benefit from a change in government,” she said. “It’s a lot about confidence, what you feel when you go to your house or ride around the area.”

Yet the desire for political change does not necessarily translate into outright rejection of Netanyahu’s record.

Eylon Bader, 37, who spent roughly a year fighting in Gaza and moved from Tel Aviv to the northern kibbutz of Neot Mordechai about 18 months ago, considers Netanyahu one of the most consequential Jewish leaders of modern times — comparing his historical importance to that of the biblical kings David and Solomon.

But Bader plans to support former Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, saying Netanyahu has become a central figure in the political divisions gripping the country.

“It’s not about right or left. It’s not about a Palestinian state or not,” he said. “It’s about yes Netanyahu or no Netanyahu.”

Bader’s biggest concern is the exemption from military service enjoyed by many ultra-Orthodox Jewish men, a contentious issue as reservists have endured repeated deployments.

“It’s not Judaism. It’s terrible for society,” he said.

Retired IDF Col. Kobi Marom delivered a blistering assessment of Netanyahu’s leadership, holding the prime minister personally accountable for the failures surrounding Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre.

“I think Netanyahu and his government are totally responsible for what happened on this terrible Oct. 7, the biggest disaster this country ever had,” he said. “We must check how and why this has happened.”

Marom also blasted the government’s relationship with Qatar, which he called “an enemy country,” and its continued support for ultra-Orthodox parties resisting military conscription, describing them as central issues confronting voters.

He plans to vote for Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party, noting that he served alongside the former IDF chief of staff and considers him a close personal friend.

Along the Gaza border, the wounds of the war remain intensely personal.

Hila Fenlon, 48, of Netiv HaAsara, whose partner’s cousin Eden Yerushalmi was among six Israeli hostages murdered by Hamas in captivity, sees Netanyahu’s handling of the hostage crisis as a failure extending beyond military judgment.

“You can forgive a professional failure. You cannot forgive a moral failure,” she said.

But others believe Netanyahu’s wartime leadership is precisely why his governing coalition should remain in power.

Shira Felbert, 46, a Jerusalem mother of six who plans to vote for Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s Religious Zionist Party, said she judges politicians by their actions rather than their campaign rhetoric.

“Under this government, Israel has become much stronger against its enemies: Hezbollah is far weaker, and Iran knows Israel will act,” she said.

Felbert said she believes Netanyahu should eventually be replaced, but sees no convincing alternative at present.

“For me, strength is not the goal,” she said. “It’s what gives a mother in Israel the basic certainty that she can raise her children here in safety.”

The election will determine the makeup of Israel’s 120-seat Knesset, where a governing coalition needs a majority of 61 seats.

Recent polling has pointed to a fragmented electorate, with neither Netanyahu’s allies nor the opposition assured of enough seats to form a government without difficult negotiations.

Former national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi, a longtime Netanyahu ally, said the election campaign has been unusually subdued, a striking contrast to the fiery political battles of years past.

“So far it looks, I would say … it’s a sleepy election,” he said during a meeting organized by the Foreign Press Club of Israel. “I remember elections. Hundreds of thousands of people gathering in the streets, marching for the right, marching for the left. But this is not a burning election.”

Hanegbi attributed the muted atmosphere to years of political turmoil, from mass demonstrations over judicial reform to the anguish of the hostage crisis and the prolonged war.

“I think there’s some kind of politics fatigue,” he said. “Hopefully it’s not a sign of apathy, but a sign of maturity.”

For voters from the Lebanese border to the Gaza frontier, however, the stakes remain immediate: whether Israel’s next government can turn military achievements into something more lasting — thriving communities, a stronger economy and a country less divided against itself.

“It’s an amazing place. It has amazing communities, amazing people. It’s a beautiful place,” Porat-Penso said of the Galilee. “Why shouldn’t people come?”