The Central Elections Committee counted two-thirds of the regular votes cast in Tuesday’s election at the Knesset by early Wednesday morning, en route to announcing preliminary results later in the day, The Jerusalem Post reports.
According to the results, the right-wing bloc led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and joined by the United Torah Judaism, Shas, the Religious Zionist Party and Naftali Bennett’s Yamina, receives – as of Wednesday morning – a clear majority to form a governing coalition.
A little after 8 a.m., Israel had counted nearly 80 per cent of votes – not including double envelopes – showing that Netanyahu’s bloc with Bennett could form a 62-seat majority coalition. According to the preliminary results, Likud has 31 seats, Yesh Atid 18, Shas 10, UTJ 8, Blue and White 8, Labor 7, Yamina 7, Yisrael Beytenu 7, Religious Zionist 6, Joint List 6, New Hope 6 and Meretz 6.
Exit polls were mostly inconclusive throughout the dramatic post-election night. The three channels – 11, 12 and 13 – initially called a victory for Netanyahu’s Likud assuming Bennett, who immediately said he would do what is right for the country, joins the coalition.
Once the regular votes are counted and tallied, the Central Elections Committee will begin counting some 450,000 double envelopes, which are ballots from hospitals, nursing homes, emissaries, soldiers, prisoners and special polling stations for returnees at Ben-Gurion International Airport and for the sick and quarantined from COVID-19.
Preliminary results from half the polling stations indicated that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would narrowly be able to form a government for the seventh time in his three-decade political career. But the counting in the Arab sector was especially incomplete, with the Joint List winning only six seats and the Ra’am (United Arab List) Party not crossing the 3.25% electoral threshold.
Netanyahu declared that his Likud had won in a speech he delivered at the Jerusalem International Convention Center at 2:30 a.m. He vowed to avoid a fifth election and called on politicians across the spectrum to enter a government he intended to build immediately.
He said that he has more than a double-digit margin, the largest margin between the first and second parties in decades. “Israel is the world champion of vaccines,” Netanyahu said. “We brought millions of vaccines for everyone just like we made peace deals for everyone.”
“I don’t disqualify anyone from sitting with me,” he said, “because the state of Israel demands a stable government.”
Hours earlier, Netanyahu declared on Twitter that he had won “a giant victory.” Sources in Likud said Netanyahu would try to build a coalition as soon as possible, but Bennett’s associates said they were “not in Netanyahu’s pocket” and that joining his government was not a foregone conclusion.
Netanyahu called Yamina leader Naftali Bennett, who told him he was waiting for the final results and he would “act for the good of all the citizens of Israel.” Netanyahu also called the other leaders in his political camp and asked them to join a strong, right-wing government.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid boasted that “Netanyahu doesn’t have 61 seats but the change bloc does,” in a speech to activists of his Yesh Atid Party. He called parties in the anti-Netanyahu bloc and vowed to coordinate their next steps together.
The turnout of 67.2% was a drop of 4.3% since last March’s election in which the turnout was 71.5% and the lowest of the four elections of the past two years.
In a speech to his party’s activists, Sa’ar downplayed his defeat and asked to wait for final results. He vowed to not enter a Netanyahu-led government, though Likud officials said they would try to woo New Hope MKs.
According to the exit polls, the Likud won 30 seats on KAN and on Channel 12 and 31 on Channel 13. Shas won 9 on all three channels. UTJ won 6 on Channel 12 and 7 on Channel 13 and KAN. The Religious Zionist Party won 7 on Channel 12 and KAN, and Channel 13 gave it 6 seats. Yamina won 7 on all three channels.
Lapid led his party to 18 seats according to Channel 12 and KAN and 17 according to Channel 13. Gideon Sa’ar’s New Hope Party won a disappointing 6 seats according to all three polls.
Yisrael Beytenu won 7 seats in all three channels. Blue and White won 7 according to Channel 12 and 8 according to KAN and Channel 13. Labor won 7 according to Channel 13 and KAN and 8 according to N12. Meretz won 6 according to KAN and Channel 12 and 7 according to Channel 13.
After struggling throughout the campaign, Meretz easily crossed the 3.25% electoral threshold, according to the exit polls. The Joint List won nine seats on Channel 12 and KAN on Channel 13 and KAN. Ra’am (United Arab List) Party however, did not cross according to the polls.
Gantz thanked his supporters for demonstrating their confidence in him.
“Starting tomorrow, I’ll do my best to unite the pro-change block,” he said. “And if we are forced to face a fifth round of elections, I will vigilantly protect our democracy, rule of law and security, because Israel comes first.”
The exit polls came following a tense day of infighting with both political camps. Yamina fought for seats with the Religious Zionist Party, while Gantz accused Lapid of sending out false statements about Blue and White and other satellite parties.
