Israeli voter turnout hits 53-year high as Netanyahu fights to stay in power
Record turnout could help decide whether Netanyahu keeps power as voters weigh accountability for the Oct. 7 attacks and the wars that followed.
- On Tuesday, Israelis surged to the polls at the fastest rate in 53 years, passing wartime judgment on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the first election since the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks.
- Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving leader with 19 years in office, faces intense scrutiny over security failures and polarizing policies that critics argue have deepened international isolation and weakened democratic institutions.
- Challenger Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief of staff, campaigns on accountability, stating, "I am convinced that by the end of today, we will see a change." His platform appeals to security hawks and those opposing Netanyahu's far-right coalition.
- Arab voters are participating in "unprecedented" numbers, with Islamist Ra'am party head Mansour Abbas hoping turnout will surpass 70 per cent in Arab communities, prompting far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to warn of Abbas-led government.
- Opinion polls show a tight race with neither leader facing an easy path to power; Netanyahu could remain as caretaker if neither candidate forms a coalition within Israel's 120-seat parliament.
338 Articles
338 Articles
The Israeli Central Electoral Commission has completed the vote count for the Knesset elections.
Israel's 2026 election results released
Israel's Central Elections Committee released the results of the 2026 elections on Thursday after announcing that the counting of double-envelope ballots had been completed. The count began at 1 a.m. Thursday in the Knesset parking garage in Jerusalem. According to the results, Likud leads with 27 seats, followed by Yashar with 21 and Beyachad with […] The post Israel's 2026 election results released appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.
After Israel’s election, expats leave country disappointed by result
BEN GURION AIRPORT, Israel — A day after the polls closed in Israel, Ben Gurion Airport was packed. The long lines for security were populated in part by Israeli expats who had returned to the Jewish state to vote, and were returning to their homes abroad. Some 67,000 Israelis were estimated to have flown in...
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