Here's the latest
• No clear winner: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main rival, former military chief Gadi Eisenkot, appear short of outright victory, exit polls indicate. After the highest turnout since 1999, Eisenkot’s bloc has a slight edge but is short of a clear path to power, the polls show.
• A blow for Netanyahu: The PM’s bloc is projected to collapse from 68 seats in the previous Knesset to 50 seats, according to Israel’s Channel 12 News. Eisenkot’s bloc is projected to secure 52 seats. Arab parties are celebrating after the polls suggested they will have record representation.
• What’s next: Final results are expected over the next 48 hours, but it could take days or even weeks for coalition building to take place. Deadlock, a minority government, a unity government – or even another election – are all possible.
Updates
(60)Exit polls shift slightly to Netanyahu, but he’s still well short of a majority
Exit polls from Israel’s three main pollsters shifted slightly toward Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, putting him tied with or slightly ahead of the opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot.
Israel’s Channel 12 News put Netanyahu’s bloc of right-wing and ultra-Orthodox parties at 52 seats, according to its latest update to the exit polls, while the Eisenkot-led bloc dropped to 49 seats. The Arab parties strengthened by one to 19 seats.
The poll also suggested Netanyahu’s Likud party opened up a lead over Eisenkot’s Yashar party, 27 seats to 21 seats.
But Netanyahu is still well short of a majority of 61 seats needed to declare victory, the exit poll still indicated. Eisenkot is also short of an outright majority, needing to cooperate with the Arab parties in order to oust Israel’s longest-serving leader.
Both Channel 13 and Channel 11 News found in their exit polls that the Netanyahu bloc was tied with Eisenkot’s bloc at 51 seats apiece. The Arab parties held 18 seats, the polls indicated.
Netanyahu expected to speak soon at his party HQ
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is due to speak soon at his Likud party HQ in Jerusalem.
Exit polls point to both his coalition and the opposition falling short of a majority.
We’ll bring you the latest from Netanyahu as we get it.
Eisenkot says Israel 'voted for change' but stops short of declaring victory
Gadi Eisenkot says Israelis have voted for change, even as exit polls show his bloc only holds a narrow lead over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition.
But he stopped short of declaring outright victory over Netanyahu, cautioning that it’s “only exit polls, and we need to wait for final results.”
Eisenkot said he would act with “all our power to establish a government,” and that his party intends to represent all Israelis. “I will act together with my partners. That decisive vote of the people will be made possible to establish a stable government for all. This is crucial time for it,” he said.
Addressing members of the country’s security apparatus and civil service, he said, “Netanyahu has no mandate and trust,” before addressing the Israeli prime minister directly.
Eisenkot closed his speech by thanking his campaign and family.
“I believe in the people of Israel and in this country. We will write a new chapter,” he said.
Netanyahu supporters stay hopeful despite polls suggesting bad night for Israeli PM
As polls emerged suggesting voters have delivered a rebuke to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, supporters of his Likud party at the headquarters in Jerusalem have been seeking out the positives.
Itzik Segev, a long-time Likud voter, remained optimistic about the results, even though the main exit polls showed support for the country’s longest-serving leader collapsing.
Only the exit poll for Channel 14, which is considered a mouthpiece for Netanyahu, predicted Netanyahu on the cusp of victory. But it seemed not many were convinced, even if they hoped the outlier poll was correct.
Nili Naouri focused on exit polls showing Likud emerging as the largest party, even if Netanyahu didn’t have a majority. “I came here to watch the results, there are mixed feelings. I’d prefer to see a sweeping victory for the right - but the night is still long,” Naouri told CNN.
Meanwhile, Yoav Kisch, a Likud lawmaker who served as the Minister of Education, said on X, “To all those who are starting with suggestions for ‘the first thing that needs to be done’ - wait for the true results.”
What role could Arab parties play after the election?
Arab parties Joint List and Raam are projected to win a record 18 seats – the highest Arab representation ever.
That voter surge was driven by an urgent desire to dismantle Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition, which includes hardline ministers like Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich.
The Arab parties could play a key role in building a coalition to form a new government. But what that could look like remains unclear.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc is projected to hold 50 seats. But he has explicitly ruled out forming a government with the Arab parties. To form a majority in the Knesset, he needs 61 seats.
Meanwhile, Gadi Eisenkot — whose opposition bloc is projected to hold 52 seats — has said these parties do not meet his requirements for forming a government, which include recognizing Israel as a Jewish state and recognizing Hamas as a terrorist organization that must be dismantled.
Still, a survey from the Hebrew University’s aChord Center shows a majority of opposition bloc voters keen to see that partnership come together.
More than 61% of opposition bloc voters want Eisenkot to form a government with Raam, the survey said. Only 20% of those voters said they prefer new elections, while 12% said they favor a rotation government with Netanyahu and 7% prefer a government with ultra-Orthodox parties.
We have the exit polls. What happens next?
While the exit polls give an early indication of what may happen next, the real contest begins once the votes are counted and the coalition building process begins. It can take weeks, or even months, for a winner to emerge.
Once the vote count is final, usually within a few days, the president holds a round of consultations in which each elected party recommends their choice for prime minister.
Based on these talks, the president then tasks one candidate with forming the government. This is not necessarily the leader of the largest party, but rather the one who has the best chance at building a viable coalition.
The way things look right now, the incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is unlikely to be selected because neither the opposition bloc nor the Arab parties will recommend him.
If that is the case, President Isaac Herzog is likely to give the first opportunity to form a government to Gadi Eisenkot.
He would have four to six weeks to negotiate with other parties over cabinet posts, budget priorities and policy, trying to cobble together a majority in the Knesset. If the exit polls turn out to be correct, the two Arab parties will play a key role in this process.
A survey conducted this evening by the Hebrew University’s aChord Center found that a majority of those who voted for the opposition bloc want Eisenkot to form a government with Raam, one of the two Arab parties.
If Eisenkot was to fail – a real possibility given his relative inexperience – the another candidate, most likely Netanyahu, would be given a chance by the president to form a government and the whole bargaining process starts again.
If he was to fail too, the Knesset itself gets a short window to put forward another candidate, and if it cannot - the country goes to new elections.
So winning is not only about votes and seats, it’s about building - and maintaining - a viable coalition.
October 7 families say exit polls show “clear majority” for a state commission of inquiry
Bereaved families and survivors of the October 7 attack on Tuesday welcomed the exit poll results, calling them a clear public verdict in favor of a state commission of inquiry into the security and intelligence failures that led to the Hamas-led assault on Israel three years ago.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has refused to appoint such a commission, which is Israel’s highest investigative body, and has not accepted responsibility for the deadliest day in Israel’s history, in which over 1,200 Israelis were killed and 251 were kidnapped to Gaza. In sharp contrast, all the parties in the opposition bloc have expressed support for establishing such a commission. Gadi Eisenkot, Netanyahu’s main challenger, has pledged that it would be his government’s first decision if elected.
The October Council, a grassroots group representing bereaved families and survivors, said the projections show “a clear majority” of 70 lawmakers in the next Knesset.
“These elections were about truth, about responsibility, and about establishing a state commission of inquiry into the October 7th massacre,” the group said in a statement. “The citizens of Israel have spoken, and it is time for elected officials to do what is incumbent upon them.”
The council urged all party leaders and candidates who made a commitment to act to establish a commission on the first day of the new Knesset “without delays and without condition,” even before a government is formed. “There is no reason to wait for coalition agreements, the distribution of portfolios, or political negotiations. Establishing a state commission of inquiry is not a prize for the winners of the elections and is not a bargaining chip between parties. It is a national, moral, and historical obligation of the State of Israel toward its citizens,” the group said.
Netanyahu is facing a "crash" in support, prospective member of parliament says
Today’s exit polls suggest the Israeli public has lost trust in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to a prospective member of parliament for the Yashar party, led by Netanyahu’s main challenger, Gadi Eisenkot.
Both Netanyahu and Eisenkot appear to have fallen short of an outright path to victory, exit polls show. But polls also suggest Eisenkot’s bloc might have a slight edge over Netanyahu’s grouping.
“Netanyahu’s coalition has lost 18 seats, 18 mandates. I would call that a crash. So, the Israeli public has spoken,” Pollak-David said on Tuesday evening.
Asked if she had hoped for a wider margin between Netanyahu’s coalition and Eisenkot’s bloc, Pollak-David said: “We could always hope for more, and we worked very hard, and we continue to work very hard on convincing the Israeli public. But we’re seeing a clear wish for change.”
Speaking about next steps, she said any coalition building would take place “behind closed doors” over the next couple of days, or weeks. “There are lots of options. We have been preparing for this day, we have been planning for this day with various scenarios,” she said.
Voter turnout on Election Day surged to 77.7%, elections committee says
Voter turnout on Israel’s Election Day surged to 77.7%, the Central Elections Committee said on Tuesday evening, the highest percentage since 1999.
Nearly 5.7 million voters cast their ballot out of approximately 7.3 million eligible voters. Polling places closed at 10 p.m. local time, but the committee must still count double envelope ballots, which could be hundreds of thousands of additional votes.
These double envelope ballots are used by soldiers, reservists, diplomats, and others. They will push the voter turnout even higher, but the Central Elections Committee (CEC) doesn’t begin counting those ballots immediately.
Israel’s highest-ever voter turnout was 79.7% in 1988, according to the CEC.
Here's how the White House might see the collapse in support for Netanyahu
US President Donald Trump recently endorsed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — whose bloc is projected to collapse from 68 seats in the Knesset to 50. That’s unlikely to land well with Trump, CNN’s Kevin Liptak reports.
Exit polls: See the first indications of Knesset seat numbers
Early exit polls released by Israel’s Channel 12 suggest the Knesset’s 120 seats will be divided between 11 parties.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party appears to have come top, just above the main opposition party headed by Gadi Eisenkot.
Here are the full exit polls:
Arab parties celebrate as exit polls suggest record representation in Israel’s Knesset
At the headquarters of the Joint List in Nazareth, supporters started dancing and singing after exit polls suggested the two Arab parties would have record representation in the upcoming Knesset.
The three main exit polls suggested the Joint List and Raam would have a total of 17-18 seats, surpassing the previous high of 15 seats they had in the 2020 Knesset.
It’s also far more than the parties had in the outgoing Knesset, where they had only 10 seats.
In a statement, the Joint List said, “We can say with confidence: we sent the fascist right-wing government to the dustbin of history.”
Social media posts showed Arab parties on the streets of Tayibeh in central Israel, with crowds carrying cheering supporters on their shoulders.
In the city of Sakhnin, Mansour Abbas, head of the Raam party, said, “We will turn the seats we won into a new reality in the country.”
Speaking to supporters, former Joint List lawmaker Osama Al Saadi said that Palestinians were “waiting for this historic moment.”
“We say that we have brought down this fascist government – the government of the genocide and ethnic cleansing,” he added.
This post has been updated.
Netanyahu has lost his majority, but Eisenkot's path to victory is complicated
With exit polls showing that neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu nor his main challenger Gadi Eisenkot have a clear path to a governing majority, post-election coalition arithmetic is now wide open. Deadlock, a minority government, a unity government – or even another election – are now all plausible outcomes.
The news is bad for Netanyahu. His bloc of ultra-Orthodox and far-right allies lost its majority from 68 seats to just 50. Exit polls still project that his Likud party will hold a sizeable 24 seats – and will remain the largest party. But it is still well short of the 61-seat majority needed in the 120-seat parliament. And Netanyahu crucially needs a coalition to stay in power.
The opposition bloc holds a weighty 70 seats on paper, but the reality is that it is fractured and divided, making it difficult to find a way forward. Jewish Zionist parties account for 52 seats, while the Arab parties are projected to win a record 18 seats – the highest Arab representation ever.
Eisenkot’s Yashar party is projected to be the largest party in the opposition bloc with 22 seats, but other party leaders in his bloc have ruled out a government that relies on Arab support – significantly complicating any bid to unseat Netanyahu.
The record Arab turnout appears to be one of the defining stories of the elections. Palestinian citizens of Israel – roughly 20% of Israel’s population – have traditionally voted at lower rates than the national average. In the 2022 election, Arab turnout was 53%. This time, it appears to have surged to over 78%. The move is seen as a protest vote against Netanyahu’s government and his far-right allies, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
Meanwhile, a high voter turnout also raises the bar for the small parties, because they will need more votes to pass the 3.25% electoral threshold.
Exit polls are projections, and the picture could shift as real votes are counted overnight.
Exit polls show no clear winner
Exit polls released by Israel’s Channel 12 indicate there is no clear winner.
Both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main challenger, Gadi Eisenkot, appear to fall short of an outright path to victory.
However, the exit polls suggest Eisenkot’s bloc might have a slight edge over Netanyahu’s grouping.
Netanyahu's main rival says vote indicates "complete lack of confidence" in government
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s rivals welcomed the result of the exit polls, framing it as collapse of his support, even though the opposition doesn’t have a clear path to victory.
Gadi Eisenkot, chair of the Yashar party and Netanyahu’s main challenger, said it indicated “a complete lack of confidence in Netanyahu and the October 7th government.”
Former Prime Minister Yair Lapid, who partnered with Naftali Bennett, another former prime minister, said, “Don’t let anyone confuse you: the Netanyahu bloc has suffered a crushing defeat. This is a total collapse and the public has told them to go home.”
And Yair Golan, head of the left-wing Democrats party, said, “The public has spoken. It has fired Netanyahu’s government. We have been given a historic opportunity to establish a genuine government of change in Israel, and we have no intention of giving it up.”
Very narrow edge for Netanyahu’s main rival in exit polls: CNN correspondent
While there is currently no clear winner in the Israeli election based on the exit polls, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s main challenger, Gadi Eisenkot, has a “very narrow edge,” CNN’s Jerusalem Correspondent Jeremy Diamond said.
“Right now, we are seeing a result that is showing no clear winner in this race for the next prime ministership,” Diamond said shortly after polls closed on Tuesday evening local time from Netanyahu’s HQ in Jerusalem.
Diamond said that Netanyahu’s party, based on Channel 12 exit polls, is projected to be the largest party in the next Knesset. But he noted that in the past, “these exit polls have tended to both underestimate and overestimate the strength of Netanyahu’s governing Likud party.”
No clear winner as Netanyahu and main rival fall short, exit polls suggest
Exit polls indicate there is no clear winner in Israel’s elections, with both incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main challenger, Gadi Eisenkot, appearing to fall short of an outright path to victory.
According to Israel’s Channel 12 News, Netanyahu’s bloc is projected to collapse from 68 seats in the previous Knesset to 50 seats. Eisenkot’s bloc had 52 seats, while the exit polls suggest the Arab parties have a record 18 seats.
Even though Netanyahu’s coalition, including far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties, is expected to be smaller, his Likud party is projected to have the largest share of seats in the next Knesset with 24 seats to Eisenkot’s Yashar party’s 22 seats.
An outright victory requires a coalition to have at least 61 of the Knesset’s 120 seats. Both Netanyahu and Eisenkot appear short of that mark, based on the exit polls.
Voting ends in a few minutes. Here's what to expect next
Voting in Israel’s tightly contested election is about to end — although election officials have stressed anyone who arrived at a polling station before the 10 p.m. cutoff time will be able to vote.
Immediately after that, Israel’s biggest news channels will release their exit polls, giving the world a first indication of what might happen next.
Remember: Exit polls are based on surveys done with voters at polling stations — they are not actual results. Those will start coming in over the next few hours.
Why do many Israelis relate to Gadi Eisenkot? A political analyst explains
What makes a former military chief relatable to many Israelis? For Gadi Eisenkot’s supporters, it’s partly a sense that he shares their grief.
That’s according to Dahlia Scheindlin, a political analyst and senior columnist at Haaretz, considered a liberal publication, who told CNN that Eisenkot’s personal losses often come up in conversations with voters.
“He himself is a bereaved father,” she said.
Eisenkot’s son was killed fighting in Gaza two months into the war. The next day, he lost a nephew. And a year later, he lost another.
“Nobody says this is the reason to vote for him, but it often comes up when you ask why people feel like he’s so relatable,” Scheindlin said. “Many Israelis are living with a sense of loss.”
His military career is another part of his appeal. In Israeli politics, a storied military career is seen as a major asset and a gateway to success. Several former generals became prime ministers, including Yitzhak Rabin and Ehud Barak.
Eisenkot is attempting to play on the same sentiment. Supporters see him as “having devoted his life as a career army person to the good of the state,” Scheindlin said, adding that in Israel, like in many countries, the army is seen as above politics.
“In many ways, he represents everything that Netanyahu does not in their eyes,” said Scheindlin. His recent arrival in politics also leaves him less associated with its “general dirty business,” she said.
Many voters, she observed, feel the current government “is working only for Netanyahu’s closed circles.” In contrast, Eisenkot “is on their side.”
Read more on Netanyahu’s main challenger in Israel’s elections here.
Israelis get a day off and free public transport to vote
Unlike many countries, Israel only allows in-person voting on the day of the election. There are no absentee ballots and no voting by proxy or by mail.
On top of that, each voter can only vote at the polling station that’s been assigned to them in their place of residence – although there are some exceptions to this rule, including for diplomats, soldiers at military bases, hospital patients, prisoners and people who have been evacuated from their homes.
To make it easier for people to be able to turn up, election days are traditionally public holidays in Israel. Schools, which are often used as polling stations, are shut, as are most workplaces.
To make any journey home to vote easier, many public transportation services including intercity buses and trains have been running for free since yesterday evening.
