Israel votes on Netanyahu’s future
Voter turnout is at a five-decade high in Israel’s closely-contested parliamentary election, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces a referendum on his handling of political scandals, corruption allegations, and wars with Hamas and Iran.
Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief who heads the centrist Yashar party, has emerged as Netanyahu’s strongest challenger. Eisenkot is unlikely to soften Israel’s military or foreign policies. Instead, he has portrayed himself as a patriotic centrist, free of the self-interest that characterized Netanyahu prior to Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
Before the attack, Netanyahu faced corruption probes and was sinking in the polls as protesters took to the streets to oppose his controversial judicial reforms. Although the attack and subsequent war on Gaza bought Netanyahu some political breathing space, his opponents are now questioning how the prime minister could have left Israel undefended on October 7, and whether he ignored forewarnings about the attack.
Netanyahu has also been condemned for putting his interests before Israel’s by attempting to push Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir into a new military operation on the eve of the election, according to a Channel 12 report. Former Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman has demanded that the prime minister be investigated on suspicion of treason over the allegation.
Rising defense spending, higher living costs, and wartime tax hikes have further eroded Netanyahu’s popularity. An October 21 Jerusalem Post analysis of four major surveys put Eisenkot’s Yashar party at an average of 22.5 seats, compared with 19.75 for Netanyahu’s Likud.
However, neither Netanyahu’s allies nor the opposition appear assured of the 61 seats needed for a majority in Israel’s 120-member Knesset. The closing of the polls at 10:00 PM local time on Tuesday will likely mark the beginning of a lengthy period of political horse-trading, in which Netanyahu’s far-right allies and Israel’s Arab parties could play an outsized role in deciding the Jewish state’s next government.
27 October 2026
13:33 GMTThe election is exposing fault lines not just on the Israeli right, but inside the country’s ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities. According to Haaretz reporter Aron Rabino, members of the Haredi community in the city of Modi'in Illit attacked fellow Haredim campaigning for the Haredi Public Party, which supports the military conscription of those not engaged in full-time religious studies.
פעילים של מפלגת הציבור החרדי הותקפו מחוץ לקלפי במודיעין עילית על ידי עשרות צעירים חרדים. העמדה של המפלגה הושחתה וחומרי ההסברה הועלו באש. איפה המשטרה? @IL_police https://t.co/p1m27zqNWG
— אהרן רבינוביץ (@AronRabino1) October 27, 2026The wider Haredi community has violently resisted any attempts to subject its members to the draft, fueling resentment among non-Orthodox civilians who are required to perform military service.
- 13:23 GMT
The issue of October 7, and whether Netanyahu knew about the attack in advance, looms large over the election. Since 2023, multiple sources have claimed that Netanyahu was warned of an impending attack by Egypt, and last month, Haaretz reported that UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed personally warned the Israeli PM about Hamas’ plans ten days before the attack.
Netanyahu denies both claims, but 43% of Israelis believe he knew something in advance, according to an Israel Democracy Institute poll published earlier this month.
Eisenkot has made this a central issue of his campaign, declaring last month that “Netanyahu received dozens of warnings about October 7 and ignored them all. He is unfit for office.”
- 13:15 GMT
Ben Gvir isn’t the only Israeli right-winger spooked by Arab turnout. In a series of messages posted on X, Netanyahu claimed that Arab parties are busing voters to polling stations, and that “huge lines are being reported in the Arab settlements.”
“Muslim Brotherhood supporters are raiding the polling stations and stealing the elections,” he exclaimed in one post, before calling on his “Likudniks” to “wake up and act.” - 13:09 GMT
Netanyahu and Eisenkott have both already cast their ballots. So too has Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) leader and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir. In a video message posted on social media, Ben Gvir called on Jews to come to polling stations to counter the “crazy voting rate” of Israel’s Arab citizens.
As of noon, the Bedouin village of al-Atawneh in the Negev Desert had the highest turnout of any Israeli municipality, according to data from Israel’s Central Elections Committee.
- 12:57 GMT
Welcome to RT’s live coverage of Israel’s parliamentary election, in which voter turnout is already breaking long-established trends. Overall turnout stood at 44.9% as of 2pm, the highest at this time since 1973, when Prime Minister Golda Meir managed to retain power despite the Yom Kippur War breaking out under her watch two months earlier.
The story of a wartime prime minister attempting to hang on to power is a familiar one to Israelis, and Netanyahu is likely hoping to fend off Eisenkott, just as Meir fended off his Likud party in 1973.
Turnout among IDF soldiers – those actually fighting Netanyahu’s wars – stood at 28% by 1pm, almost four points higher than in 2022.
