Voting underway in Israel's high-stakes Knesset elections

Jerusalem: Israel went to the polls on Tuesday as voters began casting ballots to elect members of the 26th Knesset, the country’s parliament, with around 7.3 million people eligible to vote, local media reported.

The final opinion polls released ahead of the election indicated a close contest between incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc and opposition factions led by former Israel Defence Force (IDF) chief Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party.

However, both sides are projected to fall short of a parliamentary majority if they stick to their campaign pledges to avoid forming a government with certain other factions, The Times of Israel reported.

Israel's President Isaac Herzog and his wife, Michal Herzog, were among the early voters casting their ballots.

Minister of National Security of Israel Itamar Ben-Gvir also casted his vote.

Exit polls are expected shortly after voting concludes at 10 p.m.(local time), providing preliminary indications of the outcome, while official results are likely to be finalised in the coming days after the vote count is completed.

Meanwhile, speaking to IANS, one local urged citizens to exercise their democratic right, saying, “Everybody should go out and vote. Everybody who's over 18 years old should come and say what they need to say and put their specific paper that they want in votes, and should go out and vote. More people should vote; everybody should vote.”

Another Iocal underscored the significance of the election, saying, “I say this election is the most important in the history of the State of Israel.”

Former Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) Major Ariel Averbuch, meanwhile, expressed concern that the election could result in a political deadlock, potentially forcing the country to hold another election.

"So I'm afraid that we might see a tie tomorrow, which will drag us into another election. At the end of the day, I believe the right wing, probably headed by Netanyahu, will win, but I'm concerned that tomorrow we're going to see a tie. Yes, I think so,” Averbuch told IANS.

Highlighting Netanyahu’s handling of Israel’s security challenges, former IDF Major Ariel Averbuch commended the Prime Minister’s approach towards multiple fronts, including Hezbollah, Hamas, Iran and the Houthis.

“…Saying that people aren't happy is really an understatement because he was in charge of a country when we had the most atrocious terror attack since the Holocaust of the Jews. But after that attack, the conduct of Netanyahu during the war is very commendable. You know, a lot of people are saying the Pager attack on Hezbollah, Hamas is deterred, Israel controls over 70 per cent of the Gaza Strip, Iran's attack, the Houthis- all of these fronts were handled in a very strict and strong manner by Netanyahu," he said.

The elections mark the first electoral contest since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack, amid significant shifts in the political landscape and the issues shaping voter priorities since the 2022 elections.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

IANS

[email protected]