As of 9:15 AM IST, Thursday 29 October 2026. Results are not final. Figures cover about 90% of votes, essentially all polling-station ballots. An estimated 430,000 to 480,000 absentee ("double envelope") ballots were still being counted and can shift seats.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc has lost its parliamentary majority, according to near-complete results from Tuesday's election. With about 90% of votes counted, the Central Elections Committee's figures give Netanyahu's bloc 53 of the Knesset's 120 seats, eight short of the 61 needed to govern. The opposition parties together hold 67 seats, but they are split between 48 for the Jewish-led bloc around Gadi Eisenkot and 19 for Arab-led parties, leaving no obvious path to a new government.
Where the count stands
According to Haaretz, with 90.4% of votes counted the seat picture was unchanged: Netanyahu's bloc 53, Eisenkot's bloc 48 and the Arab-majority parties 19. The committee began counting absentee ballots, cast by soldiers, diplomats, hospital patients and prisoners, at 1 AM Israel time on Thursday. A committee spokesperson said the count was expected to finish by Thursday evening, the Guardian reported.
An independent seat calculation from the committee's vote file by israelielections.com, at 90.5% counted, showed:
- Likud: 27 seats (20.7% of the vote)
- Yashar! (Eisenkot): 21
- Joint List: 12
- Together (B'Yachad): 11
- The Democrats and Ra'am: 8 each
- Yisrael Beiteinu, United Torah Judaism and Otzma Yehudit: 7 each
- Shas and Religious Zionism: 6 each
That site notes its allocation can differ by a seat from the official one, and its bloc totals (53, 47 and 20) differ by one seat from the committee-based figures reported by Israeli media. The Reservists list, at 2.6%, was below the 3.25% threshold. Turnout was 77.7%.
A kingmaker problem for the opposition
The Arab-led parties' 19 seats would be a record. The Joint List's leader, Yousef Jabareen, said the party was "ready and prepared to pave the way for the ousting of the Netanyahu government", the Guardian reported. But most of the Jewish-led opposition has ruled out governing with them. Eisenkot has not directly ruled it out but has set conditions that make it difficult, while the Democrats' Yair Golan has been the only opposition leader openly backing a partnership. Golan said he would meet Eisenkot and Yair Lapid for coalition talks.
Netanyahu's Likud accused Arab parties, without evidence, of having "stolen" the election and asked police and the Shin Bet to investigate. The Central Elections Committee said it would examine the complaint as part of its routine post-election review.
What happens next
- Final results: expected after the absentee count is complete, possibly by Thursday evening Israel time.
- Consultations: President Isaac Herzog will consult party leaders and then task a candidate with forming a government. Herzog said everything must be done "to avoid another round of elections".
- Caretaker government: Netanyahu remains prime minister in a caretaker role until a new government is sworn in.
The possible outcomes include a narrow opposition government relying on Arab-led parties' support, a broader unity government that includes Likud, or another election.
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