Israel Votes Tuesday in First Election Since October 7 War
Israelis will go to the polls on Tuesday, October 27, for legislative elections, the first national vote since the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, and the war in Gaza that followed, Al Jazeera reported.
The vote will decide the 120 seats in the Knesset, Israel's parliament. A party must clear an electoral threshold of 3.25 percent of the vote to win seats at all. Parliament's term lasts four years, and a majority requires at least 61 seats.
The election is largely a contest between two blocs. The pro-Netanyahu coalition is led by Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party and includes United Torah Judaism, Shas, Otzma Yehudi, led by Itamar Ben-Gvir, and Religious Zionism-Zehut, led by Bezalel Smotrich. Netanyahu is Israel's longest-serving prime minister, CNN noted.
The main opposition coalition brings together the Yashar party, led by Gadi Eisenkot, the Democrats, led by Yair Golan, Yisrael Beiteinu, led by Avigdor Lieberman, and the Together alliance. Together is led by Naftali Bennett and joined by Yair Lapid.
Polling points to a tight race. A KAN poll projected 52 seats for the opposition alliance and 50 for Netanyahu's bloc, with the remaining seats going to unaffiliated parties. Those include Ra'am, also called the United Arab List, and the Joint List, an alliance of the Hadash, Balad and Ta'al parties. Both the pro-Netanyahu and anti-Netanyahu blocs have effectively ruled out joining forces with the Arab-led parties, according to Al Jazeera. A ban on publishing new opinion polls took effect on Friday, October 23, and the latest surveys show neither bloc on course to reach 61 seats.
Israel's political climate has been shaped by several long-running conflicts. Al Jazeera described the country as embroiled in multiple years-long conflicts, facing growing international criticism and grappling with deepening domestic polarisation ahead of the vote.
The election is also being watched in financial markets. Reuters reported that Israeli markets have seen a three-year rally leading into October 2026.
The Central Elections Committee has set October 27, 2026, as the date for the elections for the 26th Knesset. The previous legislative election, for the 25th Knesset, was held on November 1, 2022.
