Israeli Politicsupdated 1h ago3 min read
Israeli Soldiers Begin Early Voting for 26th Knesset Election With 850 Military Polling Stations
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850 military polling stations deployed across IDF bases and operational sectors. Early voting by Israeli soldiers began October 21, 2026 ahead of October 27 election.
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IDF voting begins
Israeli soldiers began casting ballots in early voting for the country’s 26th Knesset election on Wednesday, with 850 military polling stations deployed across IDF bases and operational sectors ahead of the nationwide vote on October 27.
Col. Vered Ben Yehuda, the IDF’s chief elections officer, said the military was committed to ensuring that every service member could vote, including soldiers engaged in combat operations beyond Israel’s borders, and she added, "Our mission is to enable all IDF service members to exercise their democratic right to vote by secret ballot, even during operational activity and combat beyond the border,".
The IDF said approximately a quarter of the polling stations are mobile, and it said military voting would continue until polling stations close on election day.
The IDF described a double-envelope system for ballot secrecy, with soldiers placing their chosen party’s ballot slip inside a blue envelope behind a voting screen and then inserting it into a white outer envelope bearing identifying information.
The IDF said sealed military ballot boxes would be transferred to the Central Elections Committee at the Knesset in Jerusalem for counting, with the blue envelope separated for counting while the white envelope bearing personal information is destroyed.
Elections, thresholds, blocs
Israel’s elections are set for October 27, when Israelis will elect the 26th Knesset in the first general vote since the genocide against Palestinians in Gaza and the wars on Lebanon and Iran, according to Al Jazeera’s explainer. Al Jazeera said about 7.3 million people aged 18 and above are eligible to vote, and it said any party clearing an electoral threshold of 3.25 percent enters parliament, which sits for a four-year term. Al Jazeera said a majority requires 61 of the 120 seats and no party has ever won that outright, with parties then having 28 days, with a possible extension of up to 14 days, to assemble a coalition reaching 61.
The Jerusalem Post reported that a Walla poll published on Tuesday found that Yashar rose to 23 seats while Likud fell one to 19, and it said the poll was conducted on October 19, 2026, using the Panel4All online respondent panel among 601 respondents. The Jerusalem Post said the latest poll found that Ofer Winter’s People of Israel failed to reach the required 3.25%, polling at 2.9% support, while it said Yoaz Hendel and Yaron Zelekha’s Reservists-Economic Party passed the threshold, gaining four seats.
Security preparations and warnings
As election preparations intensified, the Israeli occupation army announced readiness to thwart attempted infiltrations and attacks on military sites, with the southern command of the Israeli occupation army, the Israeli Air Force, the Military Intelligence Directorate, and the Israeli Security Agency (Shin Bet) preparing for potential threats from the Gaza Strip before the elections. Lieutenant General Etzyk Cohen, head of the Operations Directorate of the Israeli occupation army, ordered reinforcements in aerial, naval, and ground operations in the coming days, and the report said the reinforcements would include units from special forces deployed as rapid response forces and reserves. The report also said the Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz issued instructions to security forces to broaden intelligence-gathering operations ahead of the Israeli elections, amid fears of possible attempts to influence the electoral process.
In Cairo, Jibril Rajoub, the secretary general of the central committee of the Palestinian Authority’s ruling Fatah faction, told AFP that Israeli settler attacks risk setting off an “explosion” in the West Bank, and he said, "The terrorism carried out by the army and settlers, under the supervision of the Israeli government… is a prelude to a coming reaction and explosion,". Rajoub urged that a “peaceful, nonviolent struggle is a necessity and a strategic choice for all Palestinians,” and he said, "Bloodshed is no longer an acceptable option," while calling for “peaceful confrontation with the occupation, despite the crimes it commits.”