Israelis go to the polls on October 27 to elect the 26th Knesset, in the first general vote since the genocide against Palestinians in Gaza and the wars on Lebanon and Iran.
asserted
Israelis → go → Lebanon
Benjamin Netanyahu, the longest-serving prime minister in Israel’s history, with 19 years in office, is seeking another term while standing trial on corruption charges.
asserted
Netanyahu → serve → charges
His Likud party and the far-right coalition it leads are locked in a close race with a Jewish-led opposition bloc, with neither side appearing on track to win an outright majority in the 120-seat Knesset, Israel’s parliament.
asserted
side → lead → Knesset
About 7.3 million people aged 18 and above are eligible to vote, according to Israel’s Central Elections Committee.
uncertain
people → vote → Committee
Most polling stations open from 7am to 10pm, and anyone still queuing when they close is entitled to vote.
asserted
they → open → pm
Any party clearing an electoral threshold of 3.25 percent enters parliament, which sits for a four-year term.
asserted
which → clear → term
How voting works
Israelis vote for a party, not a candidate.
asserted
Israelis → work → party
A majority requires 61 of the 120 seats and no party has ever won that outright.
asserted
party → require → that
Finishing first does not guarantee power.
asserted
Finishing → finish → power
Parties then have 28 days, with a possible extension of up to 14 days, to assemble a coalition reaching 61.
asserted
Parties → have → 61
If nobody manages it, the country votes again.
asserted
country → manage → it
Seats are shared out in proportion to each party’s share of the national vote, so a party winning 30 percent of votes takes roughly 30 percent of seats.
asserted
party → share → seats
The votes for parties failing to secure 3.25 percent are discarded, which explains why small parties routinely merge before every election.
asserted
parties → fail → election
Who can and cannot vote?
asserted
Who → vote → ?
About 7.3 million Israeli citizens are eligible to vote in this election, but they are not the only adults living under the government they choose.
asserted
they → vote → government
Roughly three million adult Palestinians in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem have no vote in the government that controls their borders, movement and legal status.
asserted
that → occupy → borders
Jewish Israelis and Palestinian citizens of Israel, who number about 1.2 million,
asserted
who → number → million
So can adult settlers among the more than 750,000 Israelis living in the occupied West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem, who help elect the parliament that legislates over the land they live on.
asserted
they → live → land
Most Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem hold Israeli residency, not citizenship.
asserted
Palestinians → hold → residency
They can vote for Jerusalem’s city council but not for the Knesset.
asserted
They → vote → Knesset
The result is a sharp anomaly in the occupied West Bank, where a settler votes and a Palestinian family living nearby, under the same military authority, does not.
asserted
family → vote → authority
Most Israeli citizens living abroad also cannot vote, because Israel has no general absentee ballot and requires voters to be physically in the country on election day.
asserted
Israel → live → day
Diplomats and state emissaries are the exception, casting their ballots at Israeli missions on October 20.
asserted
Diplomats → cast → October
Israelis are dealing with a series of domestic and international issues this election cycle, including:
- October 7 security failures – Three years on, the government is yet to form a state commission of inquiry into the events of October 7, 2023, when a Hamas-headed attack led to the killing of some 1,200 people, with about 250 taken captive.
asserted
250 → deal → people
Israel launched the genocidal war against Palestinians in the wake of the attack, killing at least 74,000 people and leaving most of the besieged territory in ruins.
asserted
Israel → launch → ruins
- Ultra-Orthodox draft exemptions – Supporters of the exemptions say they protect full-time Torah study, but critics argue they place an unfair military burden on everyone else.
- Judicial reform – Netanyahu’s push to curb the Supreme Court’s powers, which sparked mass protests before the war on Gaza, remains a deep fault line.
asserted
which → say → Gaza
Critics see it as a threat to democracy, while supporters argue that the court has overstepped its authority.
asserted
court → see → authority
- War and security – The public wants stability but remains wary of concessions in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and Lebanon.
asserted
public → want → Gaza
Netanyahu promised “total victory”, but Hamas and Hezbollah remain operational.
asserted
Hamas → promise → victory
- Cost of living – High prices and modest wages are being further squeezed by soaring defence spending.
asserted
prices → squeeze → spending
Since 2023, Israel’s defence budget has doubled, increasing pressure on public finances.
asserted
budget → double → finances
Israel’s outgoing government
Netanyahu’s coalition held 60 of the Knesset’s 120 seats when parliament dissolved in July.
asserted
parliament → hold → July
It comprised Likud with 32 seats, Shas with 11, Religious Zionism with seven, Itamar Ben-Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit with six, and New Hope with four.
asserted
It → comprise → four
Shas left the government in July 2025 but remained in the coalition and New Hope will merge into Likud for this election.
asserted
Hope → leave → election
The opposition held 59 seats: Yesh Atid with 24, Blue and White with eight, United Torah Judaism with seven, Yisrael Beiteinu with six, Hadash-Taal and Raam with five each and Labor with four.
asserted
opposition → hold → four
Netanyahu is seeking re-election while facing a trial on corruption charges, which he denies.
asserted
he → seek → which
His far-right coalition is up against a bloc comprising of four major Jewish-led opposition parties, whose leaders have signed a declaration promising not to attack each other ahead of the vote and to join forces in forming a government after the polls.
asserted
leaders → comprise → polls
Former army chief Gadi Eisenkot is viewed as the opposition’s most likely candidate for prime minister, with his new Yashar party evenly matched with Likud in the opinion polls.
asserted
party → view → polls
The opposition alliance includes the Together list, led by former Prime Ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid; Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu and Yair Golan’s Democrats.
asserted
alliance → include → Bennett
Other key players include far-right ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, the ultra-Orthodox parties, and the Arab-majority lists Ra’am and the Joint List.
asserted
players → include → Gvir
…and 14 more, not listed.
The Aporia
