The Knesset will hold its next general elections on October 27, as announced by MK Ofir Katz on Sunday, marking the first time in nearly 40 years that elections have been called on the legally stipulated date and the first time in over half a century that an Israeli government has completed its full four-year term, according to the Knesset Committee chairman and legal advisor Sagit Afik.

The current chamber completes its mandate on July 17, triggering the electoral recess. The ratification follows a failed opposition attempt last month to dissolve Parliament for early elections, which was rejected 61-53 after ultra-Orthodox parties Shas and United Torah Judaism withdrew support following a preliminary agreement on military service regulation for their community.

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The military exemption issue remains a political flashpoint, especially since the Supreme Court ruled mandatory recruitment for ultra-Orthodox Jews in June 2024 after the exemption law expired. The government has promoted a bill to maintain most privileges while incorporating some into the army.

Israel will hold national elections on October 27, the last date allowed by law, parliament says, in a vote widely seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s leadership since the Gaza war erupted. pic.twitter.com/uYVQ9xBkQp

— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) July 12, 2026

In May, opposition leader Yair Lapid called for early August elections, seeking to end Netanyahu’s government. He warned against prolonging “another entire summer of corruption and fratricidal hatred,” alluding to the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the prime minister’s corruption trial.

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