28, 2026 File photo: Supporters of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu celebrate at Likud party headquarters in Jerusalem following the release of the first exit poll results in Israel’s general election Wednesday, Oct.
You all need to stream to the polls,” he said. “This is a fateful moment.” In a message to supporters, Netanyahu urged them to vote, saying turnout was high among his opponents on the left and among Israelis of Arab heritage, around a fifth of the country. “We need it to be high too.
If neither Netanyahu nor Eisenkot can form a governing coalition in the 120-seat parliament, Netanyahu could stay on as caretaker until another election is held. His opponents have managed to wrest him from the premiership only once since 2009, and that took four inconclusive elections in two years. He was back 18 months later. For many of Netanyahu’s opponents, the election turns on accountability for the security failures of Oct 7.
Netanyahu has campaigned on an endorsement from US President Trump, his ally in war against Iran, who has said they should “finish the job”. “I am convinced that by the end of today, we will see a change — a new spirit for the State of Israel — that will serve as a rectification for the past three years and for that terrible day,” Eisenkot said. Ahmed Tibi, a candidate from an Arab party, said the record turnout from Israel’s Arab minority would “pave the way for an alternative govt and change the grave reality”.
Opposition groups have promised to hold a national inquiry, which Netanyahu’s govt has resisted. Eisenkot has ruled out partnering with Arab parties, citing a lack of shared values, although some possible scenarios envision them propping up a minority govt to topple Netanyahu. Netanyahu has repeatedly described Arab-Israeli voters as a threat in language his opponents say crosses into racism.
“I think these elections are the most important of all the ones I’ve known,” said Ruth Epstein, an 81-year-old longtime left-wing voter in Ramat Gan near Tel Aviv, who voted for the opposition Democrats. “I’m really scared about what will be here.”