Voice of Urdu – International News in English & Urdu

Israel Election: Arab Parties Win Record 18 Knesset Seats — AI-generated representative image: Voters queue outside a polling station in Israel on election day amid record turnout.

Editorial Team

Historic Palestinian voter turnout leaves Netanyahu and opposition blocs tied, scrambling to form a coalition

Israel's Arab parties are projected to win a record 18 seats in the 120-member Knesset, according to exit polls from Tuesday's election, after voter turnout among Palestinian citizens of Israel surged to its highest level in decades.

The leading Arab-led parties, the Joint List and Ra'am, are positioned to hold their largest-ever parliamentary presence, while the opposition bloc led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot's Yashar party and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud bloc were tied at 51 seats each, updated exit polling indicated.

The outcome marks a potential turning point for Palestinian citizens of Israel, who make up about 21 percent of the country's population of 10 million and have traditionally voted at lower rates than Jewish Israelis. Their record participation has thrust Arab-led parties into a pivotal role in determining whether either major bloc can assemble the 61 seats required to form a government.

Record Turnout and a Deadlocked Race

Early indications put voter turnout among Palestinian citizens of Israel at around 80 percent, breaking records set in 1999, Israel's Channel 12 reported. Overall turnout also reached its highest level since that year, with 77.7 percent casting ballots, according to the Central Elections Committee.

Ra'am leader Mansour Abbas said he hopes the final results will allow the anti-Netanyahu bloc, including his party, to reach the 61 seats needed to govern. "With the numbers we have now, there is no government," Abbas told Channel 12, adding that both main blocs had reached out to his party before and after the election.

Background and Political Context

Ra'am, also known as the United Arab List, currently holds five seats in the Knesset and joined the coalition that governed Israel from 2021 to 2022. Its leader, Mansour Abbas, has positioned the party as a potential coalition partner, a role that has historically been complicated by the refusal of some Jewish-led parties to govern with Arab factions.

Former Israeli ambassador Alon Pinkas said forming a government could prove difficult for parties such as Eisenkot's, which had promised during the campaign not to form coalitions with Arab parties. "There's a price to pay," Pinkas said, because "Arabs can't be kept outside and only being considered and co-opted when you need their votes." He added that Arab-led lists will make demands that a Jewish-led coalition government may not support.

Campaign Tactics and Reactions

Netanyahu and his far-right coalition made last-ditch efforts on Tuesday to mobilize supporters, warning of surging turnout among Palestinian citizens of Israel, a tactic Arab politicians denounced as racist and inflammatory. Cars flying Likud flags drove through Jerusalem blaring the Islamic call to prayer and urging supporters to vote because "Arabs are voting," witnesses said.

In social media posts, Netanyahu highlighted long queues at polling stations in Arab communities and published an image he said showed Arab voters, including women wearing the niqab, waiting to vote. "If we don't wake up now, we'll find ourselves with a government of Mansour Abbas and Ahmad Tibi," he said, referring to two leading Palestinian members of the Knesset.

What Lies Ahead

Final results remain pending, and coalition negotiations have not formally concluded. Analysts and party leaders alike have signaled that the ability of either bloc to secure a governing majority will depend heavily on whether Arab-led parties are brought into or excluded from coalition talks. Additional official confirmation of the final seat count is still awaited.