Israel’s parliamentary election appears to have produced no clear winner, according to the first exit polls reported by Dutch broadcaster NOS and Israeli channels.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud is projected as the largest party, with 24 seats on Channel 12 and 25 on Channel 13. Haaretz reports 25 on Kan 11 and 30 on Channel 14, which has favored Netanyahu in its pre-election polling. Even 25 would be seven seats fewer than the 32 Likud won in 2022.
Channels 12 and 13 give the bloc opposed to Netanyahu, led by former army chief Gadi Eisenkot, 52 and 53 seats, against 50 for Netanyahu’s bloc. The Arab parties are projected at 18 and 17 seats. Netanyahu’s outgoing coalition held 64 seats.
i24NEWS projects 49 seats for Eisenkot’s bloc and 55 for Netanyahu’s. Channel 14 projects 43 and 60. No channel gives either bloc 61.
Haaretz counts the Arab parties as part of the opposition, which puts that side at 70 seats on three channels. But some parties in Eisenkot’s bloc have refused to cooperate with Arab parties, and NOS reports that almost everyone rules out a coalition with parties representing Arab citizens, who are about 20% of the electorate.
The Knesset has 120 seats, so a majority needs 61. No single party has ever won one, so every government is a coalition or relies on outside support. Forming one has often failed, and this is the sixth national election since 2019, according to Ynet.
Exit polls are projections. In 2022 they gave the right-wing bloc 61 to 62 seats, and it won 64. Counting continues overnight, with a clearer picture likely on Wednesday and official results later. President Isaac Herzog will then consult the parties and ask one leader to try to form a government. If none succeeds, JNS reports, another election would follow in about 90 days. Herzog has said he will do all he can to avoid a repeat.
It was the first election since the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023. Israelis vote for parties, not leaders, but many treated it as a referendum on Netanyahu, the country’s longest-serving prime minister. According to CNN, polls suggested security, along with the economy and cost of living, were leading concerns.
Turnout was 74.3% as of 8 p.m., the Central Elections Committee said, up from 66.3% at the same hour in 2022. Times of Israel reports it is the highest at that hour since 1988. Local media reported that about 70,000 Israelis living abroad flew in to vote, since voting from abroad is not allowed. Other reports put the figure as high as 80,000.