“Israelis” Begin Voting in Knesset Elections

By Staff, Agencies

Voting began Tuesday in “Israel’s” elections, with more than 7.3 million eligible voters set to elect the 120 members of the Knesset.

Polling stations opened at 7 a.m. local time [0500 GMT] and are scheduled to close at 10 p.m. [2000 GMT], according to the “Israeli” Central Elections Committee.

Authorities have established 12,018 polling stations and approximately 18,000 ballot boxes across the country, deploying around 100,000 election workers to oversee the voting process.

A total of 37 parties and electoral lists are competing for seats in the Knesset, with a minimum of 61 seats required to form a governing coalition.

The main contenders include Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party, former Army Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party, and the Together alliance led by former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.

Other prominent political groups contesting the election include the Democrats, led by Yair Golan; Yisrael Beiteinu, headed by Avigdor Lieberman; and Jewish Power, led by so-called “National Security” Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

Palestinian-led political parties are also participating, including the Joint List, headed by Yousef Jabareen, and the United Arab List [Ra’am], led by Mansour Abbas.

The vote marks the first general election in “Israel” since the beginning of its genocidal war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023.

Vote counting is scheduled to begin after polling stations close at 10 p.m. local time [2000 GMT]. “Israeli” television channels are expected to publish exit polls shortly after voting ends, while preliminary results are anticipated overnight.

According to the “Israeli” Central Elections Committee, official election results are scheduled to be announced by November 4.

Meanwhile, 4,218 “Israelis” voted early at 101 polling stations established across 99 diplomatic missions abroad on October 15 and 16. The turnout represented 86.7% of the 4,863 eligible overseas voters, according to the committee.