Israelis are heading to the polls for what many view as one of the most pivotal elections in the country’s history.<\/p>\n
Polling published on Friday suggests incumbent Benjamin Netanyahu is in a near neck-and-neck race with former military chief Gadi Eisenkot to become prime minister.<\/p>\n
But neither of their political blocs are projected to win the 61 seats needed to form a majority government – meaning weeks or months of political wrangling may lie ahead.<\/p>\n
The campaign has been shaped by the issue of security – with the opposition bloc hammering Netanyahu for the unprecedented security failure that led to the 7 October Hamas-led attacks on Israel, in which nearly 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken back to Gaza as hostages.<\/p>\n
They have pushed for an independent commission of inquiry into the attacks – something Netanyahu has long resisted, insisting it would be biased against him.<\/p>\n
Despite the opposition’s attack lines, Netanyahu has once again framed himself as “Mr Security” – pointing to what he says are strategic victories in Israel’s wars across the Middle East and his close relationship with US President Donald Trump. <\/p>\n
Israel’s proportional representation system means governments have always been coalitions – and the race to power can, and has, produced unexpected alliances. But this election looks especially tight – and lines in the sand have already been drawn.<\/p>\n
Eisenkot, who leads the newly formed Yashar Party, is the main figure in the so-called “change bloc”, a collection of parties who have ideological differences but share the goal of ousting Netanyahu.<\/p>\n
Other leaders in the bloc include former prime minister Naftali Bennett and Avigdor Lieberman – both right-wingers who take hardline positions on security – and Yair Golan, a left-leaning former general.<\/p>\n
For Netanyahu, a titan of Israeli politics who first served as prime minister in 1996, a return to power will hinge on another alliance with the far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties that make up his current governing coalition – the most right-wing in Israel’s history<\/a>.<\/p>\n