The opposition bloc led by former army chief Gadi Eisenkot edged ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition in Israel’s general election, but neither camp came close to the 61 seats needed to govern, exit polls showed Tuesday night.

The opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot prevailed by a narrow margin over PM Netanyahu’s coalition in Israel’s first election since the October 2023 attacks, according to polls circulated after the ballot box was closed.

The result opens a period of uncertain negotiations over who will form the next government, with neither side having reached the required majority in parliament.

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Parties opposed to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu won more seats than his coalition in Tuesday’s parliamentary election, though Likud Party remained the most-voted party, and neither bloc reached the 61 seats needed to govern in the 120-seat Knesset.

The three main exit polls, published after voting closed at 10 p.m. local time, placed Eisenkot’s bloc at 52 to 53 of the Knesset’s 120 seats, against 50 for Netanyahu’s religious and right-wing alliance. No party in Israel’s history has ever captured an absolute majority of 61, making coalitions unavoidable.

BREAKING: Early exit poll results are showing Netanyahu’s coalition and the opposition coalition both falling short of the seats needed for a majority.

🔴 LIVE UPDATES: https://t.co/6gTzKogVEg pic.twitter.com/HrNY9tsJxL

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) October 27, 2026

The vote was the first since the attacks of October 2023. Voters formed long lines through the day, casting ballots under the weight of the deadliest date in the country’s history and the wars that followed. Turnout approached record figures, nearly 74 percent by 8 p.m., according to the central election commission.

Neither candidate can yet claim a clear path to 61. Netanyahu can argue that he heads the largest single party, while Eisenkot can point to the larger bloc.

BREAKING: Israeli elections have ended and the exit polls are in. All three Israeli channels have Netanyahu’s bloc at 50. Eisenkot’s bloc is at 52 or 53. The Arab parties are at 17 or 18, the most seats they have ever won.

Likud finished first with 24 or 25. Yashar is second… pic.twitter.com/26FRBxyRco

— Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) October 27, 2026

Arab Parties Could Decide

Arab parties, which also oppose the current Prime Minister, would win 18 seats, a number that would exceed the 15 seats the Joint List won in March 2020. This time the Joint List and the United Arab List, known as Ra’am, ran separately, with 10 or 11 seats and 7 seats respectively. Israel’s Supreme Court had overturned, on October 2, the Central Elections Committee’s decision to exclude both lists.

Arab parties have rarely joined Israeli coalitions. The exception was Ra’am, which entered the government of Bennett and Yair Lapid in June 2021. Adding the Arab seats to either bloc’s exit-poll total reaches 120, which means the Arab parties’ stance could decide whether any government forms.

If no one secures a majority, Israel would return to the polls with Netanyahu as caretaker Prime Minister. Between April 2019 and November 2022 the country held five elections. The last one returned Likud party to power with a 64-seat coalition. A new vote would be the sixth in about seven years.

The most likely scenario now is a prolonged negotiation or even new elections in the coming months. Until a government forms, Netanyahu’s administration would remain in office as a caretaker, unable to advance major policy changes.

The narrow margin leaves the next coalition in doubt. With neither side reaching 61 seats, both leaders will likely push to assemble a governing majority, a process that has repeatedly convulsed Israeli politics in recent years.

The Central Election Committee began counting ballots after polling stations closed and will release partial results overnight. Official tallies often diverge from exit poll projections, leaving the final composition of the Knesset uncertain for days.

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