Overview
- Exit polls and post‑vote samples on Tuesday showed a near tie between the blocs led by Gadi Eizenkot and Benjamin Netanyahu with neither reaching the 61‑seat majority needed to form a government.
- Television and public broadcaster samples projected Arab parties winning roughly 17–18 seats, a surge that elevates them to kingmaker status in coalition arithmetic.
- Israel’s security agency warned of attempts to disrupt voting while police and Shabak said the process remained under control after a foiled stabbing of opposition leader Yair Golan and other isolated incidents.
- Prime Minister Netanyahu alleged attempts to 'steal' the vote after arrests of three Arab party officials; election authorities described those detentions as a localized case under investigation.
- Analysts and party leaders say the deadlock opens multiple outcomes—minority rule with ad hoc support, a national unity deal, or repeat elections—and they expect drawn‑out negotiations that will shape Israel’s security and domestic policy direction.