Israel Election: 31.5% Had Voted by Noon

Israelis went to the polls today, October 27, 2026, to elect the 120 members of the Knesset, and by noon 31.5% of registered voters had cast a ballot. According to the Central Elections Committee, that is the highest turnout at that hour since 1977. The race pits Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Likud, who is seeking a record seventh term, against former chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar party.

Polling stations opened at 7 a.m. local time and close at 10 p.m. The vote comes right after new accusations from a United Nations commission and amid reports of a dispute over a possible new strike on Iran.

How many voters turned out by noon?

The noon figure of 31.5% is higher than in the 2022 election, when 28.4% had voted by the same hour. The committee points to 1977 as its comparison, while the Times of Israel writes that it is the highest for that time of day since the 1973 election. The sources disagree on the older benchmark, but they agree that this is a record noon turnout in recent decades.

President Isaac Herzog visited the headquarters of the Central Elections Committee and said the country’s fate lies in the hands of voters:

“This is a true festival of democracy and no one may be allowed to spoil it.”

Herzog added that different ballots go into the boxes and different opinions are expressed, but that in the end everyone shares a common fate in the same country. He voted in Jerusalem with his wife, Michal.

Who is fighting for a majority in the Knesset?

A government needs 61 of 120 seats, and neither bloc entered the election with a secure majority. Polls, according to a survey carried by the newsletter 10 Things, suggest Eisenkot’s bloc could win more seats than Netanyahu’s coalition, but neither side is close to a guaranteed breakthrough.

Netanyahu voted in Jerusalem with his wife, Sara. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir voted in the settlement of Kiryat Arba in the West Bank. Eisenkot spent election day among voters and urged them to be patient with the long lines:

“I know the lines are long, please be patient. Change is on its way. No one will be allowed to endanger the change.”

Din Livne, acting director general of the Central Elections Committee, said that high turnout is always accompanied by lines.

Netanyahu’s alarm and the claims of election theft

During the morning Netanyahu posted a call to supporters on X, claiming turnout in the Arab sector is higher than among right-wing voters:

“This is an urgent call! The future of our Jewish state hangs by a thread.”

In a second post he wrote that left-wing activists are storming the polling stations while the right is indifferent, and he urged supporters to vote for Likud and bring as many people with them as possible. In a video he went further: he claimed Arab voters in the south are turning out en masse and trying to steal the election, citing the arrest of three Ra’am party operatives suspected of bribing voters. The Central Elections Committee said there is no evidence of systematic fraud.

Transport Minister Miri Regev of Likud wrote on X:

“They are trying to steal our election and our country.”

On the other side, the Yashar, Yisrael Beytenu and Ra’am parties, among others, reported irregularities, including missing or damaged ballots. The committee says there are no signs of systematic tampering with ballots.

In Netanya, Ruby Chen, father of Sergeant Itay Chen, who was killed on October 7, 2023, was verbally attacked outside a polling station and called a “traitor.”

How are first-time voters casting their ballots?

The American network NBC News notes an unusual pattern: young voters, who lean left in most countries, are turning to the far right in Israel. According to a Channel 12 report from last month, more than half a million Israelis are voting for the first time, which could translate into 10 to 12 seats. As many as 74% of that group place themselves on the right or center-right, compared with about 65% of all voters, according to the Jewish People Policy Institute.

Research by the Agam Labs lab at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem suggests that about a third of the voters of Otzma Yehudit, the party led by Ben Gvir, are voting for the first time. Analysts link this to the fact that this generation grew up after the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023, and that military service in Israel is mandatory.

What happens after the polls close?

Exit polls are published at 10 p.m. local time, later if voting runs long. After the count, Herzog consults the leaders of the elected parties and tasks the lawmaker with the best chance of forming a government. That candidate has 28 days, with a possible 14-day extension. If he or she fails, the mandate can go to another leader, and if that also fails, Israel heads to new elections, with Netanyahu as caretaker prime minister until a new government is formed.

The backdrop to the vote is tense. The newsletter 10 Things reports that, according to Israeli officials, Netanyahu sought to launch a new military operation against Iran before the election, but Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir opposed it because he saw no urgent military reason. Netanyahu denied the reports of disagreement, and the military says its decisions are based solely on security considerations. On October 25 we wrote about Trump’s remarks on an Iran strike in the piece “Trump on an Iran strike: maybe tomorrow, maybe a deal.”

Just before the vote, a United Nations commission accused Israel of continuing genocidal acts in Gaza despite the October 2025 ceasefire. Israel rejected the findings as politically motivated disinformation aimed at its right to self-defense.