developing· Politics· Updated 18:03

Ofer Winter Admits Defeat for Amcha Israel Party in Knesset Elections

Ofer Winter, the chairman of the Amcha Israel party, conceded defeat in the elections for the 26th Knesset after preliminary results showed his party failed to pass the electoral threshold. According to the Central Elections Committee, with vote counting still ongoing on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, Amcha Israel had garnered approximately 1.6% of the vote, falling short of the required 3.25% barrier.

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Ofer Winter Admits Defeat for Amcha Israel Party in Knesset Elections — Illustration by baba

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What happened

01Ofer Winter, chairman of Amcha Israel, conceded defeat after his party failed to pass the 3.25% electoral threshold in the Knesset elections.
02With vote counting still ongoing on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, Amcha Israel had received approximately 1.6% of the vote.
03Winter took personal responsibility for the failure on Facebook, admitting he made mistakes during the campaign.
04Winter stated he entered politics after the October 7, 2023 Hamas terror attack due to the need for new leadership in Israel.
05According to Mignews, Winter blamed an ugly and unprecedented campaign against his party for preventing the formation of a strong right-wing government.
06Despite the electoral defeat, Winter thanked his supporters and vowed to continue his political activity and public service.

In a Facebook post, Winter took personal responsibility for the campaign's failure, admitting he made mistakes along the journey. He explained that his decision to enter politics was motivated by the October 7, 2023 Hamas terror attack, which convinced him that Israel required a new, unifying leadership capable of taking responsibility and making decisions. Despite the setback, Winter thanked his supporters and vowed to remain in public service and continue his political activity.

While taking responsibility, Winter also blamed an ugly and unprecedented campaign waged against his party for the electoral failure, according to Mignews. He argued that without this campaign, a strong right-wing government would have been formed, and asserted that his party had mobilized votes from opposition parties and those who did not previously want to vote.

Summarized by baba from the reports of 3 newsrooms. Updated 18:12

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