Israel Elections

Three major broadcasters missed Likud by five to seven seats. The disagreement among pollsters was there to report all along, and newsrooms, ours included, failed to make it the story.

Whatever government eventually emerges from the votes for the 2026 Knesset, the scale of Israel's participation deserves recognition. Israelis showed up.

With Likud emerging as the largest party but Gadi Eisenkot's opposition bloc ahead in the initial exit polls, the president faces a difficult decision over who should be given the first opportunity.

While Eisenkot and Netanyahu scored personal accomplishments, the question is whether the Israeli people have won. That will take time to know.

Yisrael Beytenu, led by Avigdor Liberman, is projected to win seven seats in the next Knesset, according to data from Israel's Central Elections Committee.

The memory of October 2000 has not faded, but it has been overtaken by the reality of the past four years, under a government that has done far more than neglect Arab citizens.

Israel’s upcoming election could bring the highest voter turnout in decades, testing the strength and resilience of its democracy.

Barred from using voter-tracking apps inside polling stations, parties including Likud and United Torah Judaism stationed activists outside to ask voters to identify themselves and log their turnout.

The call was recorded by Sousan Sultan, whose sister, Susan, was killed in April, 2025, and whose husband, Ziad, was murdered in August 2026.

Police also closed Route 6, Route 444, and all roads to and from Eilat, as well as multiple roads in southern Israel, until further notice due to the risk of flash flooding and forest fires.