Israel heads to first election since October 7 attacks with no bloc assured of majority
publishers 43articles 52first reported 23 Oct, 08:48 UTCdeveloping since 23 Oct · 10 editionstop 25 #17
Israelis will vote Tuesday in the country’s first parliamentary election since the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023, with opinion polls showing neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing bloc nor the opposition securing the 61 seats needed for a majority in the 120-seat Knesset.
Netanyahu’s Likud party is trailing its principal rival in polls and is expected to lose seats compared with the 2022 election. An opposition alliance is centered on Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief who leads the centrist Yashar party. Smaller parties could determine the outcome, while an inconclusive result may lead to prolonged coalition negotiations or another election.
The campaign has focused heavily on responsibility for the October 7 attack, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage, and on the wars that followed. Netanyahu has rejected blame for the security breach and resisted demands for an independent investigation. He has campaigned on his record confronting Hamas and Israel’s other regional adversaries. His opponents accuse him of failing to prevent the attack and criticize his government’s conduct of the Gaza war, proposed judicial changes and military-service exemptions for ultra-Orthodox men.
Thousands joined an anti-Netanyahu rally ahead of the vote. Some Israelis living overseas have also flown home to cast ballots because most citizens abroad cannot vote remotely. Despite opposition to Netanyahu, fragmentation among rival parties and disagreements over possible coalition partners leave the election’s outcome uncertain.
HOW THIS STORY WAS MADE
Written from 8 articles, 4 with the publisher's own text; 8 independent newsrooms once syndicated copies count as one; this version written 76 h after the record first saw the story; the editor kept it as written.
- Publishers
- 43
- Source articles
- 52
- Given to the writer
- 8, 4 with the article's own text
- Independent newsrooms
- 8
- This version written
- 76 h after the record first saw the story
- Second model (editor)
- kept as written
- Publication gate
- passed
- Human review
- none
WHAT THE EDITOR DID
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