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Israel exit polls released Tuesday night showed neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc nor the opposition led by Gadi Eisenkot securing the 61 seats needed to form a government, though Netanyahu’s Likud was projected as the largest party.
The three main broadcasters projected Netanyahu’s bloc at 50 seats and Eisenkot’s bloc at 52 to 53, with Arab parties at 17 to 18 seats, meaning the opposition would need Arab party support to reach a majority.
The figures are projections, not results.
"All polling stations are now closed. The election for the 26th Knesset is moving on to the vote counting stage," the Central Election Committee announced.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid said in response to the poll results that "Don't let them confuse you: The Netanyahu bloc suffered a harsh defeat. This is a total collapse and the public told them to get lost and go home."
Yashar Chairman Gadi Eisenkot said in response to the poll results that "The preliminary poll results point to complete distrust in Netanyahu and the government of October 7, of the Zionist majority and of the majority of Israeli citizens. If these are the final results, this is a victory for the statist-Zionist majority in Israel. I will act immediately to realize the decision of the people, to replace the Netanyahu government and to establish a Zionist mobilization government, at the earliest possible time."
"The public has spoken, it has fired the Netanyahu government. We have received a historic opportunity to establish a true government of change in Israel and we have no intention of giving it up. We represent here a tremendous public, that fought in the streets for 4 years, that registered with the party and went out to the field to persuade. We are going to do everything to ensure that such a government is established. We are ready to work with all our partners, to bridge the gaps and take responsibility. The public has spoken. Now it's our turn to do the work," Yair Golan, leader of the Democrats, wrote on X.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, who said in a post on X that "the celebrations on the left are premature."
He added: "The smugness of the biased commentators - ridiculous. One thing seems quite clear: Likud is the largest party in Israel. It's always good to learn something from the past:"
Former Israeli defense minister and army chief Benny Gantz wrote on X: "The public in Israel chose change - this must be the right change. The State of Israel faces enormous challenges from within and from without. I call on all leaders of the Zionist and statist parties to enter into immediate negotiations to establish a Zionist unity government that crosses blocs and to avoid additional elections. This is the right and only solution."
Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro wrote on X: "If exit polls hold, the Israeli public rendered a clear verdict on Netanyahu’s coalition, dropping them from 64 to about 50 seats. He has no path to a government. Eizenkot’s bloc does, working with the Arab parties who appear likely to receive a record 17-18 seats. Israeli democracy has created this important opportunity for change."
Channel 12 projected Likud at 24 seats and Eisenkot’s Yashar at 22. Channel 13 gave Likud 25 and Yashar 23, while Kan 11 projected Likud at 25 and Yashar at 21.
Against expectations, Likud held a small lead over Yashar, but the anti-Netanyahu bloc including the two predominantly Arab parties held a wide lead.
Channel 13 projected Netanyahu’s bloc as Likud 25, United Torah Judaism 7, Otzma Yehudit 6, Shas 6 and Religious Zionism 6. It projected Eisenkot’s bloc as Yashar 23, Together 14, Democrats 9 and Yisrael Beytenu 7.
Amcha Yisrael and the Reservists party were projected to fall below the electoral threshold, according to Channel 13.
Arab parties were projected at 17 seats by Kan 11 and Channel 13 and 18 by Channel 12, with the Joint List at 10 to 11 and the United Arab List (Ra’am) at 7.
A majority of Israelis voted against Netanyahu’s coalition, but neither bloc has a clear majority without Arab party support, which surged to historic highs.
At the Joint List headquarters, supporters burst into whistles and applause as the exit polls came out, chanting "Ben-Gvir out" and dancing.
The projections set the stage for potentially lengthy coalition talks.
Combined with the Arab parties, the anti-Netanyahu camp would hold about 70 seats, according to Channel 13.
Polling stations closed in Israel's parliamentary elections Tuesday evening, with voter turnout approaching 75%.
Voting in the Knesset elections ended at 10 pm local time (2000GMT), with ballot counting beginning shortly afterward. The Central Elections Committee earlier reported that voter turnout had reached 74.3% as of 8 pm local time (1800GMT).
According to the committee, 5,449,277 people had cast their ballots out of 7,331,981 eligible voters.
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