Updated at\u00a009.05 EDT<\/p>\n
Key events<\/p>\n
Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a>, has continued to urge right-wing voters to go out and vote, claiming that if they don\u2019t then a new government will be formed with parties representing Palestinian citizens of Israel.<\/p>\n \u201cBuses are heading to the polling stations, and huge lines are being reported in the Arab settlements,\u201d he wrote in a social media post<\/a> that appears as if it is part of a scare campaign.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we don\u2019t go out to vote now, we\u2019ll find ourselves with a government of the Arab parties. We must not stay home. Every vote counts!\u201d<\/p>\n The Central Elections Committee told journalists earlier today that there had been no indication of widespread irregularities.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n In an earlier post<\/a>, we mentioned that, as of 10am local time, turnout in the Israeli general election was at its highest point at that stage of voting since 1981.<\/p>\n We now have some more figures from the Central Elections Committee, which appear to confirm the trend, with the new data showing that 31.5% of Israelis voted by noon, the highest voter turnout by midday since 1977.<\/p>\n Share<\/a> In the settlement of Efrat near Jerusalem, Shani, 19, had come to the polling station with her parents, to cast her vote for the far-right party of finance minister Bezalel Smotrich.<\/p>\n She is part of a large cohort of first-time voters<\/a> who are more rightwing than older generations, and may help bolster support for Benjamin Netanyahu and his far-right coalition partners.<\/p>\n More than 500,000 Israelis have reached voting age since the last election in 2022, and three-quarters of first-time Jewish voters define themselves as right or centre-right, a recent poll for Channel 12 television found (it did not survey<\/a> Palestinian citizens of Israel).<\/p>\n People arrive to vote at a polling station in the settlement of Efrat in the West Bank. Photograph: Quique Kierszenbaum\/The Guardian<\/p>\n Shani said she chose Smotrich, a settler himself, for his promises to expand Israel\u2019s footprint in occupied Palestine. \u201cSmotrich is pushing forward with settlement expansion and improving security,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Her mother, kindergarten teacher Rivka, also voted for Smotrich, and said her priority was to return Netanyahu\u2019s coalition to office.<\/p>\n \u201cThe right must win, because otherwise there is a chance of a Palestinian state, which will be very bad for Jews,\u201d she said. Her husband Motti, who runs a healthcare standup had voted directly for Netanyahu. \u201cHe\u2019s a diplomat, he\u2019s strong. He\u2019s got whatever leadership should have.\u201d<\/p>\n Bezalel Smotrich, leader of the Religious Zionist party, votes in the general election this morning. Photograph: Avi Ohayon\/Reuters<\/p>\n Spiralling attacks by militant Israeli settlers on Palestinians<\/a>, and the growing threat of sanctions on settlement goods<\/a> and construction, were not a key election issue for voters in Efrat who spoke to the Guardian.<\/p>\n Software engineer, Yitzchak Schwarz, 36 is an activist for far-right libertarian Moshe Feiglin, running on a joint slate with Smotrich for this election. \u201cIf there are sanctions, it\u2019s going to hurt a bit, but we have to think about our own survival and our own national rights,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Yitzchak Schwarz carries a flag for the ultra right wing party Zehut, lead by Moshe Feiglin, in a polling station in Efrat. Photograph: Quique Kierszenbaum\/The Guardian<\/p>\n Sue and Tom Rosenfelt, who have lived in Efrat for over 30 years and have three sons in the reserves, said national unity and the unequal burden of military service are their main concerns. \u201cI think that at this point getting another foothold and another hilltop isn\u2019t the thing that\u2019s going to strengthen the country as a whole,\u201d Tom said. \u201cWe need to work more on unity.\u201d<\/p>\n In an election which many Israelis describe as critical, turnout was so high at their polling station at a school in Efrat that they had left the long lines, and planned to come back later.<\/p>\n Sue and Tom Rosenfelt have lived in Efrat for over 30 years. Photograph: Quique Kierszenbaum\/The Guardian<\/p>\n Both plan to vote for the party of Naftali Bennett, a rightwing settler and tech multimillionaire, who joined forces with centrist Yair Lapid. \u201cI feel like this is a time when we need to come together,\u201d Sue Rosenfeld said. \u201cYou know, Bennett and Lapid are on different sides of the spectrum, but they\u2019ve come together and that\u2019s something I want to support.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a008.57 EDT<\/p>\n Suspected stabbing attempt against Yair Golan foiled at Tel Aviv event, party says There has been a suspected attempted stabbing of the leader of the Democrats party, Yair Golan, at HaMesila park in Tel Aviv, the party has said in a statement.<\/p>\n During a voter mobilisation tour, the party said \u201can unidentified man wearing a jacket\u201d approached Golan in a \u201cthreatening manner\u201d.<\/p>\n A statement from the party read:<\/p>\n double quotation markGolan\u2019s security guards blocked the man, and as they moved toward him, a large knife slipped from beneath his clothing and fell to the ground.\n <\/p>\n The security guards immediately subdued him before he could do anything. Police were called to the scene and arrested the suspect.<\/p>\n In a statement, Golan said:<\/p>\n \u201cIncitement and violence will not deter us. This is the direct result of the poison machine operated by Netanyahu and his Qatari agents. I call on everyone who cares about security and democracy to go out and vote now, so that we can ensure the country we love so dearly becomes a free and safe place once again.\u201d<\/p>\n Golan fought a long legal battle to get security protection from the Shin Bet security service. They only resumed responsibility for his security on Monday, the day before the elections.<\/p>\n Yair Golan, 64, is a former general who leads the Democrats, a party that favours the establishment of a Palestinian state. Photograph: Noam Galai\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a008.00 EDT<\/p>\n While the media attention has been focusing on the country\u2019s parliamentary elections, Israel\u2019s assault on Gaza has continued, a year after the signing of a so-called \u2018ceasefire\u2019 with Hamas.<\/p>\n A UN commission said yesterday that Israel was continuing to commit genocide in Gaza despite the signing of the US-brokered ceasefire last October.<\/p>\n The \u200breport<\/a> by the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel, rejected a claim in May by Donald Trump\u2019s Board of Peace<\/a> that the truce had \u201clargely held\u201d.<\/p>\n It said Israeli authorities had kept committing \u201cgenocidal acts with the genocidal intent to destroy, in whole \u200bor in part, the Palestinians in Gaza\u201d. The report said:<\/p>\n double quotation markThe perception of Palestinians and a possible Palestinian state as a threat to Israel and the desire to reduce the Palestinian population contribute to a permissive military culture where Israeli soldiers, with or without directives from commanders, directly target Palestinians whether or not they pose a real or immediate threat.<\/p>\n Testimonies by Israeli soldiers in Gaza display a disregard for Palestinian lives and a military culture where Palestinians are dehumanized, equated with \u201cterrorists\u201d, trivializing the killing of civilians.<\/p>\n The aftermath of an Israeli airstrike in Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip. Photograph: Ramzi Abu Amer\/JNA\/ZUMA Press Wire\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n The report noted that between the 10 October ceasefire in 2025 and 30 September 2026, Israeli attacks killed at least 1,431 Palestinian people in Gaza, including 300 children and 130 women.<\/p>\n In its latest update, Gaza\u2019s health ministry said that 74,561 Palestinian people have been killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza since October 2023, when Isreal launched its assault on the territory following the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed.<\/p>\n The report also accused Israeli forces of having committed crimes against humanity in the West Bank. It lists extermination, torture, rape and other forms of sexual violence. Israel has dismissed the findings of the report and has denied committing genocide in Gaza.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Netanyahu casts his ballot and urges his supporters to vote, saying ‘this is an emergency hour’<\/p>\n Benjamin Netanyahu, who is fighting for his political survival, has just cast his ballot in Jerusalem.<\/p>\n In a post on X this morning<\/a>, the Israeli prime minister wrote \u201cright-wing voters, this is an emergency hour\u201d as he urged them to get out and vote to counter any left electoral gains.<\/p>\n \u201cHigher-than-usual turnout rates in the left\u2019s strongholds. Right or Palestine, for real,\u201d Netanyahu wrote.<\/p>\n Allow content provided by a third party?<\/p>\n This article includes content hosted on platform.x.com. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as the provider may be using cookies and other technologies. To view this content, click ‘Allow and continue’.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a007.49 EDT<\/p>\n Police believe the arrest of three people in southern Israel<\/a> who are suspected of being involved in voting bribe attempts was a single incident and not part of a larger campaign, according to Dean Livne, acting director-general of the Elections Committee.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a006.26 EDT<\/p>\n Early voting figures show highest turnout in decades<\/p>\n Citing figures released by the Central Elections Committee, the Israeli newspaper Ynet is reporting<\/a> that voter turnout in the election reached 16.68% by 10am local time (8am GMT), the highest level recorded at that hour since 1981.<\/p>\n Over 1.2m Israelis had cast their ballots by 10am, according to the data, a rise of 0.78 percentage points compared with the same stage of the previous election in 2022.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a006.19 EDT<\/p>\n In Sanhedria cemetery in north Jerusalem, ultra-orthodox voters came to the tombs of revered rabbis before they cast their ballots. There was no question of which way they were going to vote: for the parties representing Ashkenazi and Sephardic ultra-orthodox. But some at the Sanhedria cemetery, the young especially, made clear they only would do so reluctantly.<\/p>\n Yair Shuker, aged 19, said only one issue was important to him. \u201cThe election is about whether we will live by the Torah, or there will be no Torah. There will be a Jewish state or there will be no Jewish state,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Ultra-Orthodox voters gather at the grave of late spiritual leader Rabbi Obadiah Yossef. Photograph: The Guardian<\/p>\n And for him – as with almost all Israel\u2019s ultra-orthodox (the Haredim) – the critical measure of the state\u2019s level of observance is whether the Haredim would continue have exemption from military service.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are some who study the Torah, and some who stand and defend the land,\u201d Shuker said.<\/p>\n The exemption for ultra-orthodox religious students dates back to the founding the state, but has long been a sort of tension among Israeli Jews, all the more so since the 7 October attack in 2023 and the start of the Gaza war. Israel\u2019s supreme court ruled in 2024<\/a> that the blanket exemption for haredi men had no basis in law.<\/p>\n In return for their support in keeping him in power, Benjamin Netanyahu promised the ultra-orthodox parties (the Sephardic party Shas and the Ashkenazi United Torah Judaism) new legislation that would perpetuate the exemption, but has failed to deliver on that promise due to splits in his coalition. As a result both parties left the government, though Shas remained part of the coalition.<\/p>\n Whatever their feelings about Netanyahu, both would vote against a secular-led government led by the current opposition parties, which have pledged to end the exemption once and for all, and enforce military service if necessary.<\/p>\n Images for sale at the grave of late spiritual leader Rabbi Obadiah Yossef. Photograph: The Guardian<\/p>\n Shuker said he did not trust either coalition, but would vote because he had been told to. \u201cThe rabbi has asked us to vote for Shas, so I will vote,\u201d he said. A 23-year-old Ashkenazi ultra-orthodox, who identified himself as Yaacov K, expressed the same sense of disillusion mixed with duty. He said:<\/p>\n double quotation markI\u2019ll tell you the truth. To me and most of the people around me, we don\u2019t believe in anyone.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re asking me, I\u2019ll never go and vote. But I have a rabbi and the rabbi told me listen, you have to go and vote. And if he says you have to go and vote, then that\u2019s what I do. I don\u2019t even start thinking if it\u2019s worth it for me or not worth it for me.<\/p>\n The open distrust and contempt for Netanyahu, coupled with obedience and party discipline, could be one reason that the prime minister\u2019s bloc has over-performed by a seat or two in past elections, compared to his poll numbers. That could be crucial if the pattern is repeated.<\/p>\n Azriel Zadok, a rabbi who had come for morning prayers at the Sanhedria cemetery, argued that the mass ultra-orthodox vote was essential to preserve Israel\u2019s Jewish identity from \u201cthe left\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have no problem with the secular. We pray for them, and we pray for the soldiers,\u201d Zadok said. \u201cOur problem is with the leftists we are trying to decide for us how we should live.\u201d \u201cThey want us to go to the beach on Saturday and they want us to marry outside our faith. We want to remain Jews,\u201d the rabbi added.<\/p>\n The centre left is only a small part of the opposition bloc, and it does not propose to change the ultra-orthodox lifestyle. But the bloc is united on the insistence that the Haredim should do their part in the defence of the nation. It is the most divisive issue among Israeli Jews voting today.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a008.53 EDT<\/p>\n According to Israel\u2019s Hareetz newspaper<\/a>, United Arab List (Ra\u2019am), an Islamist party headed by Mansour Abbas, has filed a complaint to the Central Elections Committee, alleging that a systematic campaign has been launched to disrupt voting for the party.<\/p>\n In a statement, the party said police arrested several of its leading activists in southern Israel\u2019s Negev region before dawn with no clear justification, according to Hareetz.<\/p>\n The party also said there is a widespread shortage of its Arabic-language ballot slips in several areas, including the cities of Nazareth and Shfaram in northern Israel. We have not yet been able to independently verify these claims.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.09 EDT<\/p>\n About 15 million people live in areas under Israeli control. Just over 7 million Jewish Israelis and 1.7 million Palestinian citizens of Israel<\/a> live within the country\u2019s pre-1967 borders, known as the \u201cgreen line\u201d, and have full voting rights.<\/p>\n In the occupied West Bank, more than 500,000 Israeli settlers<\/a> can vote. They live among 3.1 million Palestinians who are subject to military rule and do not have the right to vote.<\/p>\n In occupied East Jerusalem more than 230,000 Israelis with voting rights live among 350,000 Palestinians who cannot vote.<\/p>\n Two million Palestinians in Gaza, who live under Israeli military occupation<\/a>, according to the international court of justice, also have no vote.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>How does the system work and when might we get results\/a new government? The Knesset, the Israeli parliament, has 120 seats, with lawmakers voted in through a system of proportional representation. No single party has ever claimed a majority of 61 seats, so Israel<\/a> has always been governed by coalitions.<\/p>\n When the results are in, the president invites the party with the largest number of seats to try to agree a governing coalition. Exit polls are released at 10pm Israeli time (8pm GMT), and the first indication of actual voting counts usually emerges in the early hours of the morning.<\/p>\n Getting full results could take much longer, with the outcome potentially hanging on the electoral fortunes of two small parties, which need to win 3.25% of the overall vote to take up seats in the Knesset. Polling puts both around this threshold. If they cross it, they each get four seats, which would have a significant impact on coalition building options.<\/p>\n Ofer Winter speaks during the National Youth Conference in Jerusalem on 11 October 2026. Photograph: Abir Sultan\/EPA<\/p>\n The far-right Amcha Yisrael is led by the former general Ofer Winter, who has pledged to back Netanyahu for prime minister if he gets into the Knesset. The Reservists is a rightwing Zionist party focused on ensuring universal conscription whose leaders sit between the two blocs.<\/p>\n They have ruled out joining any government supported by either the ultra-Orthodox \u2013 key Netanyahu allies \u2013 or Palestinian parties whose backing Gadi Eisenkot is likely to need. If it goes down to the wire, counting could take more than a day.<\/p>\n No single party has ever won a majority in the Knesset, the 120-member Israeli parliament. Photograph: Ilan Rosenberg\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a004.48 EDT<\/p>\n Palestinians with Israeli citizenship constitute about a fifth of the population but are consistently under-represented in the parliament.<\/p>\n Benjamin Netanyahu and most of his chief rivals have said they won\u2019t form a coalition with parties (broadly) representing Palestinian citizens of Israel – even if that means political gridlock.<\/p>\n But after the votes are counted these parties could hold a critical balance of power, as my colleagues Emma Graham-Harrison<\/a> and Quique Kierszenbaum<\/a> highlight in this story<\/a>. Here is an extract from their report:<\/p>\n Palestinian citizens of Israel are forecast to secure between 12 and 15 seats, divided between the Islamist Ra\u2019am and the Joint List alliance of three smaller parties, Hadash, Balad and Ta\u2019al.<\/p>\n Yousef Jabareen, leader of the Joint List political alliance, casts his ballot to vote at a polling station in the town of Umm al-Fahm. Photograph: Ahmad Gharabli\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n The mathematics of power are clear, even though most of the Jewish Israeli opposition has ruled out a coalition with Arab politicians, and Netanyahu and his allies have been doing everything they can to make such an alliance politically toxic.<\/p>\n There is recent precedent for breaking promises not to work with Palestinians, however. The Ra\u2019am leader, Mansour Abbas, in 2021 took his party into a historic coalition government with Naftali Bennett, now part of the opposition bloc, and Netanyahu himself had previously started coalition negotiations with Abbas.<\/p>\n Israeli lawmaker Mansour Abbas, leader of the Ra\u2019am party, casts his ballot alongside his daughter in Maghar, Israel. Photograph: Mahmoud Illean\/AP<\/p>\n One prospective voter, Mohammed, works at a hi-tech company, managing both Jewish and Arab employees, which he sees as a template for a different future for Israel.<\/p>\n Although disappointed that most Jewish Israeli opposition parties have ruled out a coalition with Palestinian parties, he understands the political logic, and he expects their position to shift once results are in.<\/p>\n \u201cAt the end of the day, everything is mathematics, right? One plus one is two. They cannot do anything without [those seats]. So they must do [some kind of deal] and they will do it.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a004.37 EDT<\/p>\n Who are Netanayhu’s main opponents in the general election?<\/p>\n A consistent majority of Israeli polls show prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s current coalition bloc with the ultra-Orthodox and the far right will fall below the threshold of 61 seats needed to form a government.<\/p>\n But even though there is a clear anti-Netanyahu majority, polls indicate that the Jewish Israeli opposition bloc will also fall short of the required seats, meaning weeks or even months of political wrangling may be in store as parties make deals and trade concessions.<\/p>\n So who are Netanyahu\u2019s leading rivals in the race?<\/p>\n As we have mentioned in a previous post<\/a>, the man leading the field to potentially replace Netanyahu, Gadi Eisenkot, is a former head of the Israeli military who formulated the notorious Dahiya doctrine<\/a> of using \u201cdisproportionate force\u201d to cause damage and destruction.<\/p>\n Naftali Bennett is a former prime minister and former chair of the settler council, who supports annexing much of the West Bank.<\/p>\n Avigdor Lieberman wants to dismantle the Palestinian Authority and replace it with an Israeli-Jordanian confederation (though apparently he did not consult the Jordanians about this plan<\/a>).<\/p>\n The Democrats, the only remaining political home for Israel\u2019s Zionist left, are led by Yair Golan, a former general and deputy head of Israel\u2019s military.<\/p>\n![\"Emma](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Emma_Graham-Harrison,_L.png\")
Emma Graham-Harrison<\/p>\nEmma Graham-Harrison<\/p>\n![\"Julian](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Julian_Borger.png\")
Julian Borger<\/p>\nEmma Graham-Harrison<\/p>\nEmma Graham-Harrison<\/p>\n