Makor RishonPolitics05:27

Election Officials Begin Counting Double Envelopes as Mandate Shifts Among Arab Parties

By שיר ששון

Translated & summarized from Makor Rishon by baba

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Hebrew · 5 newsrooms covering

Israel's Central Elections Committee has counted 90.2% of votes, beginning the tally of double envelopes. A single mandate shifted between Arab parties, with Ra'am gaining one and the Joint List losing one. The Likud party is the largest with 26 mandates, and final results are expected Thursday evening. The election results will determine the composition of the next Knesset, including many new members.

The story in 4 lines · by baba

90.2% of Israeli election votes are counted, with double envelopes now being tallied.
Ra'am gained one mandate to seven, while the Joint List dropped to 12 mandates.
The current coalition has 53 mandates, and the opposition has 48.
Final election results are expected Thursday evening after all ballots are counted.

Election Officials Begin Counting Double Envelopes as Mandate Shifts Among Arab Parties — Editorial illustration generated by baba News, not a photograph of the event.

Israel's Central Elections Committee announced Thursday morning that 90.2% of votes have been tallied in the recent election. The process of counting votes from "double envelopes" has commenced, though these ballots are not yet included in the published results. The overall bloc distribution remains unchanged, with a minor shift occurring solely between Arab parties: Ra'am has gained one mandate, increasing its total to seven, while the Joint List has seen a slight decrease to 12 mandates.

The Joint List and Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid's party each secured 12 mandates. The Democrats received eight mandates, and five parties, including Ra'am, Yisrael Beiteinu, United Torah Judaism, Otzma Yehudit, and Shas, each garnered seven mandates. Hadashot HaYom and Zehut are the final parties to pass the electoral threshold, each with six mandates.

Analysis of the bloc totals indicates the current coalition holds 53 mandates, while opposition parties have 48. The Arab parties collectively hold 19 mandates. Final results are anticipated for release on Thursday evening, following the completion of the count for soldier ballots and remaining double envelopes. The article also notes that dozens of new Knesset members, including security personnel, protest leaders, and families of hostages and fallen soldiers, are expected to serve for the first time, with their party affiliations detailed in a separate report.