Israeli Politicsupdated 1h ago3 min read
Archive photo · 10 July 2023Netanyahu’s Bloc Wins 53 Seats as Eisenkot’s Opposition Secures 48 in Israel Election
“Shin Bet is investigating whether they received illegal funding from Qatar and Turkey.”
“there is no basis for claims of systematic interference with the integrity of the vote.”
Photo: אורי פרקש, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Cropped for layout
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
Netanyahu's bloc won 53 seats, short of the 61 needed for a majority. Gadi Eisenkot-led opposition secured 48 seats, leaving no clear path to a coalition.
Save coverage image
ABC News was read line by line by the Watchdog: 6.0. See the score →
Deadlock and seat math
Israel’s final election results left Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc with 53 seats in the next Knesset, while Gadi Eisenkot’s opposition bloc secured 48 and Arab parties won 19 seats, leaving no coalition at the 61-seat majority threshold. The Central Elections Committee figures released after all votes had been counted showed the opposition bloc seeking to replace the premier won 48 seats, and the Election Committee said the Knesset elections were conducted lawfully. Netanyahu’s post-election speech warned that any government including Arab parties would "endanger Israel," while the opposition bloc pursued a path that could require Arab party backing.
“Netanyahu suggested that any government that included Arab parties would ‘endanger Israel.’”
Eisenkot wrote on X that he had undertaken "a long day of meetings, conversations, and preparations to realize the will of the voter," as the seat split kept coalition talks open. The Times of Israel said the Central Elections Committee published final results with Likud at 27 seats, Yashar at 21, B’Yachad at 12, and the Joint List at 11, while the pro-Netanyahu bloc held 53 seats and the Arab factions held 19.
Fraud claims and denials
Netanyahu’s Likud accused Israel’s Arab-led parties of "stealing" the election, and the party alleged voters had been "bribed" to vote for Arab parties after the head of the Central Elections Committee asked Shin Bet to investigate "serious suspicions" of foreign interference. Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari denied the allegations, saying "We categorically deny allegations that Qatar has interfered in Israeli elections or funded any activities intended to influence their outcome," as the dispute centered on alleged foreign funding aimed at increasing turnout. Dean Livne, the acting director general of the CEC, said there was "no basis for allegations of election theft," while Shin Bet later clarified its investigation did not implicate an entire community that voted legally.
Gadi Eisenkot accused Netanyahu of running "an orchestrated and organized campaign to delegitimize the election results," and Balad chairman Sami Abu Shehadeh dismissed the allegation as a "racist blood libel". The BBC reported that Netanyahu’s critics saw the accusations as an attempt to delegitimise Arab parties, thereby making it politically impossible for Eisenkot to join forces with them, which the BBC said was currently his bloc’s only route to power.
Coalition leverage and next steps
With neither bloc reaching 61 seats, the BBC said the final results offered only three plausible options for a government to be formed, including an Eisenkot-led government supported by the Arab parties. The Arab-led Joint List said it was ready for "political cooperation to oust the Netanyahu government," and the United Arab List leader Mansour Abbas said he had been in touch with representatives of both the Netanyahu and Eisenkot coalitions. The Central Elections Committee said the final official results would be submitted to President Isaac Herzog on November 4, and the Knesset was slated to be sworn in on November 10, as the seat arithmetic set the timetable for consultations.
“The Knesset is slated to be sworn in on November 10.”
Haaretz reported that nearly 50,000 Israelis joined a campaign calling for a government supported by Arab parties, and Zazim CEO Raluca Ganea said, "Likud itself previously held coalition negotiations with the United Arab List, an Arab party." The Guardian said the Israeli president Isaac Herzog urged political leaders against "tarnishing an entire community that sought to exercise its right to vote," while the central elections committee’s acting director general, Dean Livne, said there was "no basis for claims of systematic violations of election integrity."