THE LINES ARE OUT THE DOOR! Turnout in Israel’s election is running at its highest in more than four decades, in a vote many see as one of the most pivotal in the country’s history, the BBC reported.
Polling published Friday has incumbent Benjamin Netanyahu almost neck-and-neck with former military chief Gadi Eisenkot, who leads the newly formed Yashar Party and the so-called “change bloc” of parties united mainly by wanting Netanyahu out. That bloc includes former prime minister Naftali Bennett, Avigdor Lieberman and left-leaning ex-general Yair Golan.
The catch: neither bloc is projected to reach the 61 seats needed for a majority, so weeks or months of wrangling may follow. Many leading parties complained of alleged irregularities at polling stations Tuesday morning, but the Central Election Committee says there’s no evidence of systematic tampering.
An unprecedented 70,000 people have reportedly flown home from abroad to vote. Exit polls drop at 22:00 local time (20:00 GMT, 3pm CT), and many soldiers’ and reservists’ votes won’t start being counted until Wednesday, which could give a late boost to right-wing parties.
The nightmare scenario is deadlock. If nobody can form a government, new elections get called and Netanyahu stays on as interim prime minister. Israel held five elections between 2019 and 2022.
Featured image: AI-generated editorial illustration by Bugle Blast.
Sources: BBC News
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