Israeli Election Turnout Rises Across Political Divides, Arab Sector Sees Major Surge

As vote counting continues in the 2026 Israeli elections, preliminary results indicate a significant increase in overall voter turnout, reaching 77.7% before the double envelopes are counted. This marks a 7% rise from the previous election and the highest rate since 1999. While initial observations suggested a surge in left-leaning cities, data from Votes26.com reveals that the increase in these strongholds was relatively modest, around 6%. Cities identified with the right and Likud also saw a rise in participation, with approximately 72% turnout, a nearly 4% increase compared to 2022. Tel Aviv-Yafo experienced a roughly 6% increase, reaching just over 65% turnout. Even Likud-aligned neighborhoods within Tel Aviv, such as Hatikva and Yad Eliyahu, saw turnout increases of 4-9%. Cities like Ashkelon and Sderot, also considered Likud strongholds, reported turnout increases of 6.5% and nearly 7% respectively, with the Likud remaining the largest party in Sderot despite the October 7th events.

In a notable shift within the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) parties, United Torah Judaism is projected to surpass Shas, potentially losing Shas around 100,000 votes compared to the previous election. In Beit Shemesh, Shas's vote share dropped by over 5% to 16%, while United Torah Judaism rose to 41%. Ashdod also saw a significant decline for Shas, from 15.7% in 2022 to 10% in the current election, while Avigdor Lieberman's party saw a 3% increase. Ofakim showed a sharp drop for Shas, from 23.1% to 14.7%.

The Arab sector witnessed a dramatic increase in voter turnout, estimated at a minimum 30% rise over the last six elections. In Arab towns, turnout reached 78%, a significant jump from 48% in April 2019 and 64% in 2020. Bedouin towns in the Negev also saw a substantial increase, with turnout reaching 78% compared to 37% in April 2019 and a high of 56% in 2020. Rahat, Israel's largest Arab city, saw an increase of about 22 percentage points to 82% turnout. Umm al-Fahm experienced an even more extreme surge, with turnout jumping from 38.3% in 2022 to 75.6% in the current election, a nearly 40-percentage-point increase. Nazareth also saw a significant rise, with turnout increasing from 48.3% in 2022 to 72.2%.

Analysis of specific cities like Rehovot, Petah Tikva, and Haifa shows how their results deviate from the national average. Rehovot, with nearly 88% accuracy in reflecting national results since 2006, shows the Likud at nearly 24% and Yish Atid at over 20%. Petah Tikva, with 85.5% accuracy, shows the Likud leading at 25.5% and Yish Atid second at 18.7%. In Haifa, Yish Atid leads with over 22%, while the Likud is second at 18.1%.