Benjamin Netanyahu wins Israeli elections, exit polls say
Benjamin Netanyahu is set to return to office as Israel’s next Prime Minister, according to early exit polls released after voting closed in Tuesday’s elections, which would mark another incredible comeback during a tumultuous period in the nation’s politics.
The first batch of television exit polls say that Netanyahu’s rightwing coalition will gain either 61 or 62 seats, giving him control of a majority of the 120- seat Knesset, and putting him in position to form the next government. The exit polls are by no means definitive, and have proven inaccurate several times in the past. It’s possible that once actual votes are counted, his coalition could slip below 61 votes and that Prime Minister Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid party could make gains. But if the exits hold, it would mark the second time that Netanyahu — already the nation’s longest- serving prime minister — has returned to office after having been defeated. Netanyahu first served as prime minister from 1996 to 1999, and then again from 2009 until he was ousted in June 2021. He has been battling corruption charges that allies have portrayed as politically motivated. This election represented the fifth one in just four years, as Israelis remain deeply divided and have had trouble forming and sustaining governments. This time around, focus has turned to Netanyahu’s alliance with the Religious Zionist Party’s polarizing leader Itamar Ben- Gvir. Ben- Gvir has made headline due to his extremist positions and his long- standing embrace of Meir Kahane, the founding father of the now- banned Kach Party in Israel.
The exit polls have the Religious Zionist party securing 14 Knesset seats, likely making them the third largest party in Israel. Thus, Bibi will need Ben- Gvir to push Likud past the 60- seat mark that will bring him back to the prime ministership. Going into the election, Ben- Gvir demanded the Public Security Ministry. On a trip to Israel before the election, Axios reported, Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez warned Netanyahu that an alliance with Ben- Gvir could endanger Israel’s relationship with the U. S.