( CNN ) A crowd of tens of thousands filled Yitzhak Rabin Square in Tel Aviv on Saturday evening , calling for a change in Israeli leadership amid growing discontent with the current administration . The rally , called `` Israel Wants Change , '' was put on by One Million Hands , a grassroots movement that focuses its efforts on two major issues : a two-state solution and a reduction in the cost of living . On both of these topics , founder Dror Ben-Ami says , Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has failed . `` We think that the only way to go forward on that account is to change government and to get this current government out of office . To get Bibi out of office , '' says Ben-Ami . Organizers are not promoting any specific candidate or pushing voters toward any political party in the March 17 balloting . Instead , they are encouraging voters to change the current administration . Police estimated the crowd at 40,000 people . Headlining the rally was Meir Dagan , the former head of Mossad , Israel 's spy agency , and a vocal critic of Netanyahu . In recent weeks , Dagan criticized Netanyahu 's decision to speak before the U.S. Congress , and he continued his criticism at the rally , saying that he has never seen such stagnation in Israeli politics . Netanyahu still has broad support in Israel , and his Likud party is doing well in the polls . The Zionist Union is Likud 's primary challenger . In the initial round of polling immediately following Netanyahu 's speech before Congress , the Zionist Union was expected to win 24 seats in the Knesset while Likud was expected to win 23 seats . The poll comes from CNN affiliate Channel 2 Israel . Because of the nature of Israeli politics , Netanyahu 's Likud party could lose the election while Netanyahu still becomes prime minister . In many ways , this rally was reminiscent of a similar social movement that began in the summer of 2011 . Hundreds of thousands of protesters packed the streets of Tel Aviv , demanding improvements in the cost of housing , education , and health care . What started as a small social media campaign turned into a nationwide movement that spread to other major cities . This time , the issues are different . But the growing sense of discontent and the calls for change remain .
Group One Million Hands sponsors event in Tel Aviv . They want to see a new prime minister . Israeli elections come March 17 .