# Israel Election 2026: No Majority Emerges as Netanyahu’s Bloc Holds Lead, Arab Parties Rise to Record Strength
TEL AVIV — Israel’s October 27 general election produced no clear parliamentary majority, leaving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud bloc as the largest party but without enough seats to govern alone. Official results are expected by November 4, with coalition talks expected to continue for several weeks afterward. President Isaac Herzog is expected to consult parliamentary parties before assigning the task of forming a government to the lawmaker most likely to secure sufficient support, giving that candidate an initial 28-day negotiation window, extendable by 14 days.
Netanyahu’s Likud Remains Largest, but Its Alliance Has Weakened
Likud is projected to secure approximately 26 to 27 parliamentary seats, maintaining its position as Israel’s largest individual party. However, the broader alliance supporting Netanyahu’s previous government appears weakened compared with the prior Knesset, where those allied groups held roughly 20 combined seats. The Otzma Yehudit party, led by Itamar Ben-Gvir, is expected to win seven seats, while the Religious Zionism–Zehut alliance associated with Bezalel Smotrich and Moshe Feiglin is projected to take six. Together they would control 13 seats, down from about 20 previously.
Arab Parties Projected at Record High
The most notable development is the projected rise of Arab-led parties. Joint List is expected to secure 12 seats, while Ra’am, led by Mansour Abbas, is projected to claim seven. Their combined representation could reach a record 19 seats, giving Arab lawmakers unprecedented leverage in any coalition negotiations. Analyst Gadi Eisenkot has suggested that if the projected 48-seat opposition alliance secured support from all 19 Arab lawmakers, it could command 67 seats — comfortably above the 61 needed for a majority. But several Jewish-led opposition parties have already signaled resistance to relying on Arab lawmakers, which could block the arithmetic from becoming reality.
Coalition Talks Loom Over Count Certification
Israeli police have dismissed Likud’s claims that the election was “stolen” by parties representing Palestinians, as the count of absentee ballots continues. Eisenkot, Netanyahu’s main rival and leader of the Yashar party, has warned political opponents against exploiting allegations of foreign interference to delay swearing in the next Knesset. Coalition discussions could extend for several weeks after official results are certified on November 4.
