Overview
- The Central Elections Committee published final results Thursday showing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right‑wing bloc with 53 seats, the opposition with 48, and Arab-led lists holding 19 seats in the 120‑member Knesset.
- Committee chairman Justice Noam Sohlberg said he received 'serious suspicions' about foreign meddling and asked the Shin Bet security service to investigate without changing the results that will be certified.
- Likud publicly called the vote 'stolen' and accused foreign actors including Qatar without presenting evidence while President Isaac Herzog and opposition leaders urged restraint and a calm investigation.
- The results must be certified by Nov. 4, after which the president will consult party leaders and coalition bargaining will begin with the Arab parties positioned as potential kingmakers.
- High turnout, a large count of double‑envelope ballots from soldiers and diplomats, and the ongoing security crises that followed Oct. 7, 2023 help explain why this election produced a stalemate and intense political uncertainty for ordinary Israelis.