The Parliamentary Election in Israel on 27 October 2026: Some Observations on the Complicated Process of Choosing a New Government in Israel
Polling stations opened across Israel on 7 AM and closed at 10 PM Israel Standard Time (IST) on 27 October 2026, when Israeli citizens chose their representatives to the 26th Knesset, Israel’s unicameral national legislature. The party candidate lists had been formalised the month before, and the deadline for submission was at 10 PM IST on 8 September. The first national election since the 7 October 2023 Hamas massacre has described by many as the nation’s most consequential election to date. A tally of the returns, which included ‘double-envelope’ absentee ballots cast by soldiers, reservists, diplomats, and hospital patients, was completed by 30 October, when the independent Central Elections Committee released the results of 5, 690, 682 valid votes at 11:35 PM IST. The turnout on election day was 77.7%, up from 70.6% in 2022, but there was no clear winner. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing and religious bloc secured 53 seats, while 48 seats went to the centrist opposition alliance led by Gadi Eisenkot (former Chief of Staff of the Israel Defence Forces), and 19 to the Arab-led parties. Netanyahu’s Likud party became the largest party in the Knesset, followed by Eisenkot’s Yashar Party, but his parliamentary majority, which had reached a peak of 68 seats in the 25th Knesset, was dented. Official certification of the results is expected to follow on 4 November.
Jewish-Israeli voters’ concerns related to national security issues; the cost of living; exemptions from compulsory military service for ultra-Orthodox men; political corruption; judicial reform; and the availability of public transport on Shabbat- among others. There were some differences over regional strategy and international relations, while support for Palestinian statehood and a two-state solution has dropped significantly.
A special feature of the election was the high turnout of Arab voters, who often boycott the polls. Nearly 840,000 Arab-Israelis voted on 27 October for the Islamist Ra’am (United Arab List) and the Joint List (a coalition of three Arab-led secular parties-Balad, Hadash, and Ta’al). The Central Election Committee had initially disqualified the Arab parties from standing in the election, but the ban was unanimously overturned by the Supreme Court. Arab-led parties have only once before served in an Israeli government (between January and June 2022), and both Netanyahu and Eisenkot have ruled out an electoral partnership with what they consider to be anti-Zionist parties. Arab-Israelis, who include Muslims, Christians, Druze, and Bedouins are able to participate in Israel’s political and economic life, although some complain of discrimination in education, housing, job opportunities, policing, and the upholding of property rights. The Arab vote can, on this occasion, be considered a vote against Netanyahu and his policies in Gaza and the West Bank (Judaea and Samaria). Netanyahu’s claims of a “stolen election”, funded by Qatar and Türkiye, are the subject of a “targeted and limited” investigation by the Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic intelligence, but the results will stand nonetheless.
On this occasion, Israel’s citizens have engaged with the democratic process and spoken freely. The results reflect the small nation’s diverse population, and its ethnic, religious, and ideological divisions. As of September 2026, Israel’s population of 10. 305 million comprises 7. 828 million Jews and ‘others’ (non-Arab Christians and members of other religions) (78.3%), and 2.173 million Arabs (21.7%). The small size of Israel is disproportionate to the amount of attention it generates in global discourse: the nation occupies a mere 8, 630 square miles and can be crossed by car across its width in about 90 minutes.
Israel’s political landscape is somewhat fluid, with new parties constantly emerging, while existing parties either split into smaller factions or merge with their like-minded counterparts. Israel’s political parties can be broadly classed under five groups: right-wing and nationalist; centrist and liberal; left-wing and Zionist-Left; Ultra-Orthodox (Haredi); and Arab-majority parties.
Israelis vote for party lists, or electoral alliances, and not for individual candidates. Every voter has the same ballot with the same party options, with no legislative districts to complicate matters. All elected members represent the entire nation. No single party has ever won an outright 61-seat majority in the 120-seat Knesset in Israel’s history, making coalition governments the norm. Israel’s closed-list proportional representation system requires parties to pass the electoral threshold of 3.25% of the national vote-the equivalent of four seats- to be represented in the Knesset.
After the election, the President of Israel consults with party representatives and identifies the party leader with the greatest chance of forming a coalition government. The chosen leader is granted a 28-day mandate, with a possible 14-day extension, to form a coalition government. The Knesset then elects the prime minister and other ministers. Failure to form a coalition within the mandated period means a return to the ballot box.
Among the available options are a national unity government bringing together Likud and Yashar, which seems unlikely given that Eisenkot considers the result a vote of no confidence in Netanyahu’s government; a minority government with support from the Arab parties; or the dissolution of parliament followed by fresh elections.
The results of the election in Israel are only the beginning of a process of deal-making which will favour the canniest operator. Israel’s political system appears to be both democratic, in that it enables a multitude of different voices, and also anti-democratic, in that smaller fringe parties can come to hold the balance of power and dictate policy. Events, as usual, must be allowed to play out at their own pace before Israel can either usher in a new government-at a time of lurking existential threat-or initiate yet another election.
Ashis Banerjee