The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamín Netanyahu is leading in the count of the parliamentary elections held on October 27, but his bloc is not reaching the 61 seats needed to govern alone, according to the vote counting updates published by El Confidencial.
With 85.6% of the votes counted, Netanyahu's coalition is positioned at 53 seats, while the opposition bloc led by former general Gadi Eisenkot reaches 48, and the Arab parties total 19 seats in what is already described as their best historical result.
The elections, the first since the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023, recorded a final turnout of approximately 77.7%, the highest since 2001, with over 4.8 million Israelis heading to the polls out of a census of around 7.33 million.
The Likud, Netanyahu's party, established itself as the leading individual force with 27 seats, followed by Yashar!, Eisenkot's formation, with 21. The conservative bloc is completed by the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism and Shas—both with seven seats—plus the ultra-nationalists Jewish Power led by Itamar Ben Gvir and Religious Zionism led by Bezalel Smotrich, with seven and six respectively.
On the opposing side, Beyajad—the party of former Prime Ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid—contributes 11 seats, while The Democrats and Israel Beitenu each add eight.
The growth of the Arab parties is the most striking aspect of the night. The leftist Joint List, which includes Jadash, Taal, and Balad, is around 13 seats, and the Islamist Raam, led by Mansur Abbas, secures between four and six depending on the stage of the count. Both parties remain outside the two major blocks, but their significance makes them potential arbiters in any coalition negotiations.
The president of Israel, Isaac Herzog, called on political leaders this Wednesday to come ready for dialogue in the consultations to form a government.
"One thing must be clear, and I mentioned it before the elections: we must do everything possible, certainly after what happened yesterday, to avoid another round of elections. So I hope everyone who comes here does so with an open mind," he stated at an event at the presidential residence in Jerusalem.
Herzog will receive the official results next week from Noam Sohlberg, the president of the Central Election Commission, and will then begin consultations with all parliamentary groups.
From Washington, Donald Trump claimed credit for the change in results. "When President Trump endorsed 'Bibi' Netanyahu, the situation changed completely," he posted on his social media, citing a text signed by Irving C. Schwartz, without clarifying the identity of that person.
The message described the scenario as "a significant tie following a comeback, or even a victory" for the leader of Likud, attributing this change to the support of the U.S. president, who had expressed his full support for Netanyahu on October 18, just days before the elections.
Israel has held five elections between 2019 and 2022 without achieving stable coalitions, making Herzog's warning of a new electoral round a real threat.
The historic voter turnout recorded in this election —the highest in 45 years by 6:00 PM on the day of voting— reflects the significance of what was at stake, but the outcome without a clear majority opens up a negotiation process that promises to be as complex as the previous ones.
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