Israel’s election has produced no clear winner, leaving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main rival Gadi Eisenkot competing to form the next government as vote counting continues and neither bloc appears to have secured a parliamentary majority.
Netanyahu called for the formation of what he described as “a strong, right-wing national government,” while Eisenkot said voters had rejected another Netanyahu premiership and urged him to leave politics. Neither candidate declared victory.
As vote counting continued, exit polls from Kan 11 and Channel 13 showed the two main blocs tied at 51 seats each. Channel 12 gave Netanyahu’s Likud-led alliance a slight advantage, projecting 52 seats against 49 for the opposing bloc. In all three projections, neither side reached the 61 seats required for a majority in the 120-member Knesset.
The political stalemate could benefit Netanyahu in the short term, allowing him to remain caretaker prime minister while coalition talks continue. If negotiations fail, Israel could eventually face another election.
Far-right religious parties led by Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich were projected to win a combined 13 seats as part of Netanyahu’s bloc, without making significant gains.
Arab parties that sit outside the two main political camps could become decisive in determining the next government. However, Eisenkot, who leads the Yashar party and previously served as Israel’s military chief, has largely ruled out forming a coalition with them, narrowing his options.
Addressing supporters at Likud headquarters in Jerusalem shortly after 3 am local time, Netanyahu focused heavily on Israel’s recent military operations and suggested that further joint action with U.S. President Donald Trump against Iran could be possible.
“Israel faces a singular historical opportunity, together with our partner President Trump, to remove the existential threat of Iran once and for all. But ulterior motives must not divert us from this sacred mission,” he said.
Eisenkot, meanwhile, accused Netanyahu of trying to politicise national security.
He described Netanyahu as a caretaker prime minister who lacked a public mandate and urged Israel’s security establishment to resist any attempt to place political interests above national security.
Turnout reached 77.7%, according to Israel’s Central Elections Committee. It was the highest participation rate in more than two decades and around seven percentage points above the level recorded in 2022.
Final results are expected on Thursday or Friday. Israel’s fragmented political system means smaller parties could once again play a decisive role in coalition negotiations, which in previous elections have lasted for weeks or even months.
If neither camp succeeds in building a governing majority, Israel could be forced into another election. Eisenkot has opposed that possibility, pointing to the unusually high turnout.
Yohanan Plesner, president of the Israel Democracy Institute, described the exit polls as a major setback for Netanyahu’s coalition. However, he also noted that Eisenkot had not secured a clear victory and that the balance could still shift as more votes are counted.
If the exit poll projections are confirmed, Netanyahu’s nationalist-religious coalition would remain well below the 61-seat threshold needed to govern. The alliance once held as many as 68 seats.
Eisenkot, 66, emerged as Netanyahu’s main challenger during the campaign, presenting himself as a centrist while emphasising his experience on security issues.
He entered politics four years ago and later joined Netanyahu’s war cabinet following the Hamas-led attack in October 2023. Eisenkot left the cabinet eight months later after openly criticising Netanyahu’s handling of the war.
Although Eisenkot has sought to distance himself from Netanyahu and his far-right allies, his positions on security remain relatively hardline. He opposes the creation of a Palestinian state and has said Hamas’ military wing must be destroyed or dismantled.
Eisenkot has also argued that Israel’s military campaign in Gaza failed to achieve its objectives because Hamas remains in power. Gaza health authorities say more than 74,000 Palestinians have been killed during the war.
At the headquarters of the Joint List, an alliance of Arab parties, supporters celebrated the exit poll results amid historically high turnout among Palestinian citizens of Israel.
Candidate Faten Ghattas said the alliance rejected occupation and racism and intended to remain politically active. Joint List candidates said strong Arab participation could give them a decisive role in preventing Netanyahu’s coalition from returning to government.
The election took place against the backdrop of the October 2023 Hamas-led attack, in which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage, as well as the wars that followed in Gaza and against Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iran.
Netanyahu has faced criticism over the intelligence and security failures that preceded the attack. At the same time, he has argued that Israel became more secure under his leadership after the killings of senior figures from Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran.
His right-wing coalition has remained deeply divisive inside Israel and has also faced increasing international criticism. Netanyahu, however, has continued to present himself as the leader best able to confront the country’s security threats.
The 77-year-old has served as prime minister for almost 19 of the past 30 years and has repeatedly survived political crises.
Since 2009, his opponents have removed him from office only once, following four inconclusive elections in two years. He returned to power around 18 months later.
Netanyahu also entered this election while still facing long-running corruption charges, which he denies, as well as continued criticism over the failures that allowed Hamas-led militants to carry out the October 2023 attack.
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