Israeli voters turned out in near-record numbers in Tuesday’s legislative election, with at least 77.7 percent of eligible voters casting ballots, the Central Elections Committee said. More than 5.69 million of about 7.33 million eligible voters participated, exceeding the last election’s total and marking the highest Knesset turnout since 1999, when 78.7 percent voted. The figure was about 7.1 percentage points higher than the 70.63 percent recorded in 2022.
Turnout among the Arab community inside Israel reached about 80 percent, Channel 12 reported, five percentage points higher than the 1999 record. The military said soldier turnout had climbed beyond 68 percent by 5pm (15:00 GMT), higher than 65 percent at the same stage in 2022. Polling stations closed at 10pm local time (20:00 GMT), but the committee said anyone still waiting in line could vote; it rejected a Likud request to extend voting hours, local media reported.
Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich issued an 11th-hour appeal to right-wing voters, saying turnout “in the Arab sector is unprecedented” and warning that a “dangerous left-wing government” could take power. “Do not despair! It is still possible to win,” he said on X. Prominent politicians from Arab-led lists accused right-wing figures of incitement against Palestinian citizens, who make up 20 percent of Israel’s population, and of questioning their legitimacy to vote.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged supporters to vote more than five hours after polls opened, saying turnout was high among opponents on the left and among Palestinian citizens of Israel. “We need it to be high too. You all need to stream to the polls,” he said. “This is a fateful moment.” He had repeatedly warned about high Palestinian citizen turnout ahead of the vote, seeking to mobilise his base under the slogan “the right or Palestine.”
The election is largely seen as a referendum on Netanyahu’s handling of the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks and the wars that followed-the most intense period of combat for Israel since the 1973 surprise military campaign by Egypt and Syria.
Pollster and former Netanyahu aide Mitchell Barak told Al Jazeera that turnout “is really high and that’s good,” adding that it would probably pass the historic peak in 1973, when Israel was also involved in a huge war. He said the numbers would help incumbent parties because the 3.25 percent Knesset threshold remains, so the votes needed to meet it increase dramatically.
Israeli officials noted exceptionally long lines at several polling stations, attributed to high turnout despite rainy and blustery weather and flood warnings in some areas. The Association for Civil Rights in Israel filed a complaint warning that widespread delays could be suppressing the vote among Palestinian citizens of Israel. It said delays had been reported in at least 18 communities and asked the committee to investigate “whether these delays are deliberate.” ACRI also reported “a large presence” of police and National Guard officers at a Negev desert polling station, raising concerns that crowd control was being used as a pretext to prevent people from voting.
Original Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/27/israel-election-turnout-highest-in-50-years-as-voting-continues
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Publish Date: 2026-10-28 05:31:00
