Arab Parties Gain Seats as Netanyahu Bloc Leads in Israeli Election Vote Count

Initial results from Israel's 26th Knesset elections, with 70.7% of votes counted, show Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc securing 54 seats, while Gadi Eisenkot's bloc has 47 seats. Arab parties collectively increased their representation to 19 seats. The Likud party garnered 27 seats, "Yesh" received 20, and the Joint List rose to 13 seats. "Yahad" obtained 11 seats, "Democrats" and "Yisrael Beiteinu" each secured 8 seats, and "United Torah Judaism," "Shas," and "Otzma Yehudit" each won 7 seats. The "Religious Zionism-Zehut" list and the "United Arab List" each received 6 seats. The United Arab List's representation increased from four to six seats, partly due to strong showings in its strongholds like Rahat, Kseifa, and Kafr Qasim, where it received over 74% of the votes in initial counts. The Joint List saw a slight decrease in seats compared to a previous update, losing one to "Yesh" which then lost it to the Joint List. Election officials stated that the counting of double envelopes would commence around midnight and continue until the following evening, with over half a million such envelopes expected. The final seat distribution is not yet clear and will only be determined after all ballots are counted and verified. The election, held on October 27, saw a 77.7% voter turnout, the highest in years. A government requires at least 61 seats in the 120-member Knesset.