Netanyahu's bloc stalls at 53 seats, short of an Israeli majority, as record Arab turnout makes Arab parties possible kingmakers
Benjamin Netanyahu, whose Likud party has filed witness statements and physical evidence with Israeli police alleging cash-filled envelopes containing Ra'am ballots were distributed to manipulate the vote.Arab parties surged to a projected record 18 or 19 seats, complicating any Gadi Eisenkot-led coalition that has been reluctant to depend on their backing.
With 93.8% of ballots counted, Netanyahu's right-wing and religious bloc is projected to win just 53 of the 120 Knesset seats, leaving him eight seats short of the 61 needed to govern. Former prime minister Ehud Olmert told India Today TV that voters had delivered a clear no-confidence verdict, warning Netanyahu cannot form a government while retaining Ben-Gvir, Smotrich and the ultra-Orthodox parties as allies. Opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot's bloc stands at 48 seats, with Arab parties securing 19 — enough, if combined, to reach a blocking majority of 67.
Arab voter turnout surged to roughly 80%, against 53.2% in 2022, transforming the two Arab parties into potential kingmakers.
Netanyahu's Likud won 26 seats to remain the largest single party, but Olmert said most of those gains came from cannibalising allies within his own bloc, not from expanding support.
Olmert warned Netanyahu would have to abandon Ben-Gvir and Smotrich to find an alternative coalition — but said he doubts the prime minister is 'capable of doing it'.
