Israeli Vote Leaves No Clear Winner

Israel’s parliamentary election ended Tuesday without a clear victor, according to exit polls.

Major Israeli television networks released data suggesting neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc nor the opposition led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot secured the 61 seats required for a majority.

The polls indicated that Netanyahu’s alliance won 50 seats. The opposition bloc took 52 or 53 seats, while Arab-led parties captured 17 or 18. This distribution leaves the country in political limbo, likely triggering weeks of negotiation before a new prime minister is named or new elections are scheduled for early next year.

Eisenkot addressed supporters late Tuesday, stating that the results reflect a lack of confidence in the current leadership. He pledged to act immediately to implement the country’s decision. Preliminary official results are expected within hours, with final counts arriving in the coming days.

Turnout was high, with more than 74% of eligible voters casting ballots by 8 p.m. The Central Elections Committee reported this figure is the highest at that time in decades and sits eight percentage points above the 2022 election. Over 7 million people were eligible to vote, including tens of thousands who traveled from abroad.

Arab parties are now positioned as potential kingmakers. Mansour Abbas, head of the Ra’am party, told voters that their participation would change the government. Arabs constitute about 20% of Israel’s population, but both major blocs have historically refused to partner with them. Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right national security minister, warned that if Netanyahu’s side does not win, it will be Mansour Abbas’ government.

Voters expressed strong emotions at polling stations. In Kiryat Shmona, a Netanyahu stronghold near the Lebanese border, one man kicked and tore down an Eisenkot poster. In Tel Aviv, families of victims killed on Oct. 7, 2023, or former hostages observed a moment of silence. Yona Adam, whose daughter Mapal Adam was killed, urged people to remember those whose voices are no more.

About 330,000 young Israelis eligible to vote for the first time participated, many facing compulsory military service. Eisenkot began his day by visiting communities attacked on Oct. 7. He called for voters to remove what he described as the worst government Israel has known. He noted that victory was not certain, calling it perhaps the most critical day since the state’s founding.

Dean Livne, acting director-general of the elections commission, said the number of complaints regarding irregularities was much lower than in previous elections. The race is widely viewed as a referendum on Netanyahu’s nearly 17-year rule. His supporters see him as a steady hand during war, while critics say he is polarizing and undermining the judiciary.

Parties likely to support Eisenkot have vowed to conscript ultra-Orthodox men and bolster judicial independence. Nisso Shitrit, a voter in Jaffa, described the election as a debate over who serves and who evades service in building the country.