Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for a strong, right-wing government in an overnight post-election speech. He described his party, Likud, as the strongest in the country.
“Likud is the largest party in Israel,” Netanyahu stressed at a post-election rally. He added that he is waiting for the “real election results,” and that his right-wing bloc won a “decisive majority” among Jewish voters and “all those who support the state.”
“Israel faces a unique historic opportunity, together with our partner, President (Donald) Trump, to remove the existential threat of Iran once and for all. But we cannot allow ulterior motives to distract us from this sacred mission,” he said.
According to exit polls after Tuesday’s parliamentary election, neither of the two main blocs, Netanyahu’s and his opponents’, won the majority needed to form a government.
With more than 50% of the votes counted, Netanyahu’s bloc can expect 55 seats, the opposition 50 and the Arab parties 15, The Times of Israel reported, stressing that the results will change as the count progresses. Earlier exit polls gave each of the two main blocs about 50 seats. According to both the exit polls and the partial results, Likud won the most support as a single party.
Earlier, Israeli opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to leave politics, saying voters had chosen a change of power.
Although the projected results would mean a defeat for Netanyahu and his nationalist-religious coalition, the deadlock could allow the current prime minister to remain in office during coalition negotiations, or even until another election is held, Reuters noted.
Tuesday’s vote was the first election since the Hamas-led attack of Oct. 7, 2023, and the wars in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran that followed.
Arab parties outside the two main blocs could hold the balance of power. However, Eisenkot, the opposition leader and a former army chief, has suggested that he will not form a government with them, which complicates his path to power.
According to Israel’s Central Elections Committee, turnout was 77.7%, the highest in more than two decades and about 7 percentage points higher than in 2022.
Final results are expected to be announced Thursday or Friday, Reuters noted. Because Israel’s political system is fragmented, smaller parties could play a key role in coalition negotiations, a process that after previous elections sometimes took weeks or even months. If neither bloc manages to form a government, another election may be necessary. Eisenkot opposed that solution, pointing to the high voter turnout. (PAP)
