Israelis Vote in General Election as Polls Show a Near Tie

Israelis voted on Oct. 27, 2026, in a general election that is the first since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Voting closes at 10 p.m., and opinion polls cited in live coverage by The New York Times suggest the allies and rivals of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are roughly tied.

Netanyahu, 77, is seeking re-election at the head of a coalition of nationalist and ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties. He has led Israel for 19 of the past 30 years. His main challenger is Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief of staff who leads Israel's largest opposition party. Eisenkot's son was killed in the Gaza war, according to the same New York Times coverage.

The vote follows three years of regional wars, as France 24 reported. The Oct. 7, 2023 attack that started the Gaza war was led by Hamas. Parties finalized their candidate lists ahead of the vote.

The New York Times reported that Netanyahu pushed for an attack on Iran ahead of the election, and that Israel's military chief resisted that push. The report was published on Oct. 26, 2026.

Polling has moved sharply in places. One poll published ahead of the vote gave the Likud party 19 seats, down from 32. Financial markets, according to Reuters, saw upside potential in a possible defeat for Netanyahu after a three-year rally.

Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and in Gaza cannot vote in Israeli elections. On election day, Palestinians in the West Bank were under an Israeli military lockdown.

The election is for the 26th Knesset, Israel's parliament. Israel's Central Elections Committee runs a dedicated election website at bechirot.gov.il. Reuters reported that the final tally is expected by Oct. 30, and that official results are scheduled to be formally published on Nov. 4, 2026.