Israel elections 2026

JC poll tracker: Who is on course to win the 2026 Israeli elections?

The latest polls suggest a tight race between Benjamin Netanyahu and Gadi Eisenkot for control of the next government

By Jacob Jaffa

2 min read

By Rabbi Karmi Gross

The Orthodox will not only join the IDF in large numbers – they will influence it

My yeshivah provides Israel with a model for combining intensive Torah study with full military service

5 min read

How exactly does the Knesset work – and how different is it from the British parliament?

Israeli legislature is far younger than Palace of Westminster but already steeped in its own traditions accumulated in its short history

4 min read

Jerusalem, Israel - January 12, 2017: Israel's parliament building, known as the Knesset, is located on a hilltop in west Jerusalem.

How does Israeli election voting work – and when will we know the winner?

The proportional representation system can be confusing for outsiders and may lead to protracted horse-trading that could go on for weeks

3 min read

An Israeli woman casts her vote in Har Homa as her children join her during Israel's general elections on November 1, 2022 (Getty Images)

All the latest

Israeli Politics

UK sanctions handed Netanyahu electoral boost, new polling shows

Israelis also showed more support for the settlement project and attached less importance to maintaining good relations with the UK and Europe

By Jacob Jaffa

2 min read

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits the Mahane Yehuda Market in Jerusalem on October 22, 2026 (Flash90)

Opposition bloc widens lead over Netanyahu coalition days out from Israeli elections, JC polling analysis shows

The Yashar leader looks to be the frontrunner to form the next government, but will likely face a struggle to assemble a workable coalition

By Jacob Jaffa

2 min read

Prime Minister Netanyahu attends a session of the Knesset in Jerusalem on July 16, 2026 (Getty Images)

Arab-Israeli

Young Arab Israelis open to voting for non-Arab parties as crime tops priorities

Less than half of voters in the minority group aged 18 to 26 said they were exclusively loyal to political representatives from within their community

By Melanie Swan

1 min read

Mansour Abbas of Ra'am holds a joint press conference with new party member Yoav Segalovich in Nazareth on August 31, 2026 (Flash90)

Yair Golan

Yair Golan accuses Netanyahu of plotting fresh Iran strikes to serve ‘political and personal considerations’

A new report has suggested that Netanyahu planned to launch a new assault on the Islamic Republic, but was stopped by US President Trump

By Hayley Cregor

2 min read

Yair Golan, chairman of the Democrats party, attends the Shabtai Shavit World Summit on Counter-Terrorism at Reichman University in Herzliya on October 6, 2026 (Flash90)

Gadi Eisenkot

‘You would see me resign an hour later’: Eisenkot rules out rotation government with Netanyahu

By Hayley Cregor

1 min read

Letter from Jerusalem

Has Bibi the magician run out of tricks – and if so what does future hold for Israel?

By Natalie Lisbona

7 min read

JD Vance

Vance declines to join Trump in backing Netanyahu for re-election

By Hayley Cregor

2 min read

Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz withdrew the party with just a over a week to go until Israel's election

Israeli Politics

Opposition leaders welcome Benny Gantz’s withdrawal while Likud warns of vote splitting

By Melanie Swan

1 min read

Meet the candidates

Benjamin Netanyahu: Israel’s longest-serving prime minister faces the fight of his political life

The October 27 election may determine whether he leaves office as the statesman who reshaped the economy and regional ties, or as the leader whose tenure became synonymous with the country’s gravest security failure and deepening divisions

3 min read

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a press briefing on June 15, 2026 (Getty Images)

Avigdor Liberman: Israel’s ultimate political outsider – too secular for the religious right, too hawkish for the centre-left

The immigrant from Moldova who once carried suitcases at the airport does not fit comfortably into either political camp, which could make him a kingmaker after the elections

4 min read

Avigdor Lieberman, leader of the Yisrael Beiteinu party, during a press briefing on March 20, 2023 (Getty Images)

Gadi Eisenkot: The general who became Netanyahu’s principal challenger

Ahead of the elections, he is the strongest new force in Israeli politics. Whether he becomes the third former chief of staff to serve as prime minister will depend upon his ability to preserve a broad but potentially fragile coalition of voters

4 min read

Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar party attends a press briefing on August 12, 2026 (Getty Images)

Yair Golan: The hero general who became the standard-bearer of Israel’s diminished left

His rescue of Nova survivors on October 7 dramatically changed his public standing. Now his political weight will be measured by whether a government opposed to Netanyahu can be formed without his support

4 min read

Yair Golan, party leader of The Democrats, during the party's election launch on July 20, 2026 (Getty Images)

What do the parties offer?

What is Netanyahu’s Likud offering voters in his bid to stay in power?

Great powerhouse of the right is struggling in the polls – but in Israeli politics you write off the prime minister and his party at your peril

4 min read

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets US Vice President JD Vance at the Prime Minister's Office on October 22, 2025 (Getty Images)

Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party in a nutshell – and could it actually topple Netanyahu?

Formed in 2025 and led by former IDF chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot, Yashar is trying to stake a claim on the centre ground between Likud to the right and the Democrats to the left

4 min read

Gadi Eizenkot, a former IDF chief of staff, hopes to topple Benjamin Netanyahu with his Yashar party (Photo: Getty Images)

Who are the Charedi parties and what do they stand for?

The two major parties representing the strictly-Orthodox look set to retain some Knesset seats, while a new challenger has entered their arena

4 min read

Yaakov Asher MK speaks with Aryeh Deri MK during a Knesset vote on Charedi conscription on July 14, 2026 (Flash90)

What does Bennett and Lapid’s Beyachad stand for?

Two former prime ministers are hoping to appeal to a large swathe of voters who are centre-left but want a robust approach to national security

4 min read

Yair Lapid and Naftali Bennett stand together at the inaugural conference of Beyachad in Tel Aviv on May 12, 2026 (Getty Images)

The big issues

Why even after October 7, Israeli voters favour familiar politicians

The public may want change but remain reluctant to trust someone whose judgment hasn’t been tested

3 min read

Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot delivers a statement during a press conference at the Black Arrow memorial site near Kibbutz Mefalsim, adjacent to the border with the Gaza Strip on October 15, 2026 (Getty Images)

Letter from Jerusalem

Just why has Israel not had a female leader since PM Golda Meir more than half a century ago?

A nation with female fighter pilots, Supreme Court judges and heads of prestigious universities paradoxically has few women vying for power in the October 27 general election

By Natalie Lisbona

7 min read

Great female leader: former Israeli prime minister Golda Meir with general Moshe Dayan in 1969 (Image: Getty)

How the Arab vote could decide the balance of power in Israel’s historic election

Security, crime and the economy are key issues – but the crucial question is which parties would agree to being part of a coalition government