Tight race between political blocs ahead of Israeli election

 

TT

 

Published 11.15

 

A man walks past an election poster in Tel Aviv featuring incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main rival, opposition candidate Gadi Eisenkot. Photo: David Goldman /AP/TT

Opinion polls indicate a tight race ahead of the election in Israel next Tuesday.

The two main blocs—those supporting or opposing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—are each projected to win 51 seats, according to a survey by Zman Yisrael, a Hebrew-language version of The Times of Israel.

Securing an outright majority in parliament requires 61 seats—a threshold neither bloc can reach without breaking campaign promises regarding which parties they have vowed not to govern with.

Another opinion poll also predicts a close contest, suggesting that Netanyahu’s coalition will lose its current majority, reports The Independent.

Israel’s security service, Shin Bet, has stated that it shut down several social media accounts ahead of the election. According to Shin Bet, these accounts were linked to a "foreign influence campaign."

This marks the first time Israelis are heading to the polls since the Hamas terror attack on October 7, 2023.