Israelis cast ballots in tight election testing Netanyahu's grip on power

Jerusalem, Israel. Polls opened Tuesday morning for a national election that many Israelis view as a direct test of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's leadership since the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023. The vote determines which parties will enter the 120-member Knesset, the country's parliament, where they will negotiate to form a governing coalition.

Opinion polls indicate a narrow margin between the bloc supporting Netanyahu and the opposition led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot. No single party has ever secured the 61-seat majority required to govern alone, so the outcome depends on post-election negotiations among approximately a dozen parties expected to win seats. This structure sets the stage for weeks or months of coalition building.

Voters across the country expressed high stakes for the decision. In Jerusalem, Noga Mizrahi, who traveled from kibbutz Nirim, said the election is critical and has never been more so. In Tel Aviv, families of victims and former hostages observed a moment of silence. Yona Adam, mother of Mapal Adam, who was killed in the 2023 attack, urged voters to remember those who are no longer present.

In Kiryat Shmona, a northern city near the Lebanese border and a stronghold for Netanyahu, emotions ran high. A man tore down a poster of Eisenkot, the prime minister's main rival. In southern Ofakim, one of the communities attacked on Oct. 7, Eisenkot met with voters as polls opened. The visit aimed to highlight security failures ahead of the vote and Netanyahu's refusal to hold a state commission of inquiry into the events of that day. Eisenkot, who lost his son and two nephews in combat in Gaza, positioned himself as the candidate for accountability.

Nisim Cohen, a reservist voting at a school in Jerusalem, said he trusted Netanyahu to maintain security. Cohen stated that the prime minister is not responsible for Oct. 7 and wants him to continue wars in Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran until Israelis feel safe. Conversely, Eyal Sher, a volunteer for the civil society group Elections Guards, said he monitored the process because of a corrupt government seeking to stay in power. He emphasized that every vote counts to ensure procedural integrity.

According to Israel’s Central Election Committee, more than 7.3 million Israelis are eligible to vote. This includes approximately 330,000 young voters who spent their high school years during wartime. There are around 12,000 polling stations across the country, where thousands of volunteer observers are deployed to monitor the process. Ballots are counted manually at each station immediately after voting closes.

Polling stations will close at 10 p.m. in most locations. The election tests Netanyahu's long tenure as Israel's dominant political figure. A loss could end the 77-year-old's career on a bitter note, while a victory would solidify his reputation as a political survivor. President Donald Trump endorsed Netanyahu earlier this month, a move seen as a late setback for the Likud leader who had previously cited his close ties to the U.S. president as a key asset for re-election.

Campaigns focused heavily on the security breakdown of Oct. 7, rather than Israel's wartime conduct in Gaza, which resulted in an international arrest warrant for Netanyahu. The wars against Iran and the occupation of parts of southern Lebanon and Syria enjoy broad support among Israelis. Candidates debated Netanyahu's role in the security failures, his efforts to exempt ultra-Orthodox Jews from military service, and the 2023 judicial overhaul that critics viewed as an assault on democratic institutions.