ELECTION BY THE NUMBERS: Israel Prints 450 Million Ballots, Prepares 12,018 Polling Stations and Deploys 100,000 Workers for Tuesday’s Vote

Israel readies 12,018 polling stations for 7.3 million voters

As more than 7.3 million Israelis prepare to head to the polls across 12,018 voting locations, the country's Central Elections Committee has deployed a 690-million-NIS logistical plan to decide the makeup of the 120-seat Knesset and set the stage for crucial post-election coalition building.

ELECTION BY THE NUMBERS: Israel Prints 450 Million Ballots, Prepares 12,018 Polling Stations and Deploys 100,000 Workers for Tuesday’s Vote

With Israel preparing for Tuesday’s Knesset elections, the Central Elections Committee has released figures revealing the enormous logistical operation required to accommodate more than 7.3 million eligible voters, including 450 million printed ballot slips, over 12,000 polling stations, approximately 100,000 election workers, and a budget of 690 million shekels. The figures, published Sunday ahead of the October 27 election for the 26th Knesset, offer a glimpse into the extensive preparations taking place across the country as election officials finalize arrangements for voting, transportation, security, accessibility, and ballot counting. According to the committee, 7,331,981 Israeli citizens are eligible to vote in the upcoming election. To accommodate them, officials have established 12,018 polling stations throughout Israel, with approximately 18,000 ballot boxes prepared for use. Among the polling stations, 6,209 have been designated as accessible to voters with disabilities, including 3,621 specially accessible polling stations equipped to accommodate individuals requiring additional assistance. The election operation is being coordinated through 20 regional election committees, which oversee preparations and voting procedures in their respective areas. Perhaps the most striking figure released by the committee concerns the number of ballot slips printed for the election. Although fewer than 7.4 million people are eligible to vote, the Central Elections Committee has printed approximately 450 million ballot slips, an average of more than 61 slips for every eligible voter. The enormous quantity reflects Israel’s voting system, in which each political party has its own printed ballot slip. Voters select the slip representing their chosen party and place it inside an envelope before depositing it into a ballot box. Election officials have prepared approximately 11.5 million ballot slips for each participating party list, ensuring that polling stations have sufficient supplies throughout election day. Producing the ballots alone required approximately 250 tons of paper. The preparations also involve a substantial workforce that expands dramatically as election day approaches. During periods between elections, the Central Elections Committee operates with approximately 40 permanent employees. As elections approach, that number increases to roughly 1,200. On election day itself, approximately 100,000 workers will be involved in operating polling stations, supervising voting procedures, managing logistics, and assisting with the counting process. To prepare personnel for their responsibilities, the committee has organized training programs for approximately 50,000 workers, using some 2,140 classrooms across the country. Another major component of the preparations involves monitoring voting procedures and preventing irregularities. Approximately 15,000 cameras have been allocated for election integrity inspectors, who are responsible for documenting relevant incidents and helping ensure that voting and ballot counting are conducted in accordance with election regulations. The cameras form part of the committee’s broader supervision operation, which is intended to identify irregularities and maintain confidence in the electoral process. Transportation arrangements are also being finalized to make it easier for voters to reach their designated polling stations. The Central Elections Committee announced that 660 intercity public transportation routes will operate free of charge on election day. In addition, all Israel Railways routes will be included in the free transportation arrangements. The initiative is intended to assist voters who must travel between cities to reach their registered polling locations, including individuals who live, study, or work away from the addresses where they are registered to vote. The committee’s preparations carry a substantial financial cost. The approved budget for the 26th Knesset elections stands at approximately 690 million shekels, equivalent to roughly $222 million. The funding covers the nationwide election operation, including personnel, printing, equipment, transportation, training, logistical support, and supervision. Based on the number of eligible voters, the budget represents approximately 94 shekels for every person entitled to cast a ballot. Even after the polling stations close and the votes are counted, the logistical operation will continue. According to the Central Elections Committee, more than 400 tons of paper and cardboard are transferred for recycling following an election, including materials used for ballots, packaging, and other election-related purposes. The preparations come as Israel enters the final days of an election campaign marked by intense political competition and disputes over the future composition of the Knesset. Election officials have also been addressing changes to the ballot following the withdrawal of several political parties from the race. The committee announced Sunday that ballot slips belonging to the Achi party, which withdrew from the election on Friday, will be removed from polling stations. The party’s name will also be marked as withdrawn on lists displayed to voters, and ballots cast for the party will be considered invalid. Similar procedures were implemented following the withdrawal of Benny Gantz’s Blue and White party. The Central Elections Committee said that its extensive preparations are designed to ensure that voting proceeds smoothly and that every eligible voter has an opportunity to participate. “All of this is part of the preparations to ensure a proper, accessible, and supervised election process that enables the public to exercise its right to vote,” the committee said. With just two days remaining until Israelis head to the polls, the figures illustrate the scale of the operation behind what, for each voter, amounts to selecting a single ballot slip and placing it into an envelope. Behind that simple act stand hundreds of millions of printed ballots, thousands of polling stations, tens of thousands of workers, an extensive transportation network, and hundreds of millions of shekels in election expenditures. {Matzav.com}