Israel's vote ends in deadlock, counting continues
Israel held a parliamentary election on 27 Oct 2026 with turnout of 77.7 percent, the highest since 1999 according to the Central Elections Committee. Early exit polls showed neither the Netanyahu bloc nor the opposition bloc reaching the 61 seats needed for a majority in the 120-seat Knesset. Channel 12 projected 52 seats for Netanyahu's bloc and 49 for Gadi Eisenkot and others. Partial counts showed Likud leading with 25.2 percent of votes counted. Official final results are expected on 30 Oct.
Key facts
- Arab parties won a combined 17 to 18 seats according to exit polls.
- Far-right parties led by Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich are projected to win 13 seats.
- Four parties are below the 3.25 percent threshold in the partial count.
- Eisenkot opposes a new election if no coalition forms, according to his statements.
Summarised with AI from 5 sourcesRead our AI policy
Why it matters
No bloc appears to have enough seats to govern, so coalition talks and possibly a further election could follow.
What changed
First published from Anadolu Agency, ABC News (Australia), Middle East Eye, DW and The National