Israel Election Results Show No Clear Majority, Shas Suffers Historic Low

By מערכת ice

Translated & summarized from Ice by baba

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Hebrew · 5 newsrooms covering

With 97.3% of votes counted in Israel's 26th Knesset elections, neither the Netanyahu bloc (53 seats) nor the change bloc (48 seats) has secured a majority. Shas, led by Arie Deri, has hit a 34-year low with only six seats, while the Likud, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is projected to win 27 seats. Arab parties collectively gained 19 seats, and the final results are pending the full count.

The story in 6 lines · by baba

97.3% of votes counted in Israel's 26th Knesset elections show no clear majority for either bloc.
Shas, led by Arie Deri, has fallen to its lowest result in 34 years with only six seats.
The Likud party, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is projected to win 27 seats.
The Netanyahu bloc holds 53 seats, while the change bloc has 48 seats.
Arab parties collectively secured 19 seats, with the Joint List at 11 and Ra'am at eight.
Final results are pending the full count, including absentee ballots, which could alter seat distribution.

Israel Election Results Show No Clear Majority, Shas Suffers Historic Low — Editorial illustration generated by baba News, not a photograph of the event.

With 97.3% of votes counted in Israel's 26th Knesset elections, the political landscape remains fragmented, with neither the Netanyahu bloc nor the "change bloc" securing the 61 seats needed to form a government. The Netanyahu bloc currently holds 53 seats, while the change bloc has 48, and Arab parties collectively have 19. The final results, including absentee ballots, could still alter the seat distribution.

The surprise negative outcome of the election is the Shas party, led by Arie Deri, which has fallen to its lowest result in 34 years, securing only six seats. This is a significant drop from the 11 seats it won in the 2022 elections.

The Likud party, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is projected to gain from Shas's losses, rising to 27 seats and solidifying its position as the largest party in the Knesset. However, the Likud itself has seen a decrease from its 32 seats in the previous election. Within the Netanyahu bloc, Otzma Yehudit and United Torah Judaism are each projected to receive seven seats, while Religious Zionism and Identity will have six. These five parties together hold 53 seats, eight short of a majority.

In the opposing "change bloc," Yesh Atid, led by Gadi Eisenkot, is expected to win 21 seats. Tikva Hadasha, led by Naftali Bennett, is projected to get 12 seats, followed by the Democrats with eight and Yisrael Beiteinu with seven. These four parties collectively hold 48 seats.

Arab parties have seen a notable increase in support, with the Joint List securing 11 seats and Ra'am, led by Mansour Abbas, winning eight, for a total of 19 seats. While the change bloc and Arab parties together hold 67 seats, forming a government would depend on their ability to reach political agreements.

Parties such as the Reservists and Economic party, led by Yoaz Hendel and Yaron Zelicha, and the Am Israel party, led by Ofer Vinter, have fallen below the electoral threshold. The final results are still pending the completion of the vote count, and minor changes in seat allocation are possible.

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