{"id":1744,"date":"2026-10-27T12:30:52","date_gmt":"2026-10-27T12:30:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/27\/israelis-head-to-elections-with-netanyahus-legacy-on-the-line-national-globalnews-ca\/"},"modified":"2026-10-27T12:30:52","modified_gmt":"2026-10-27T12:30:52","slug":"israelis-head-to-elections-with-netanyahus-legacy-on-the-line-national-globalnews-ca","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/27\/israelis-head-to-elections-with-netanyahus-legacy-on-the-line-national-globalnews-ca\/","title":{"rendered":"Israelis head to elections with Netanyahu\u2019s legacy on the line – National | Globalnews.ca"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

Israelis are voting in a pivotal election Tuesday as their country wrestles with unresolved wars, continues to reel from Hamas\u2019 2023 attack and is deeply divided over the character of the state and the right person to lead it.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a>, who voted just after midday, faces an array of parties seeking to oust Israel\u2019s<\/a> longest-serving premier from power. Opinion polls have suggested a tight race with his main rival, former military chief Gadi Eisenkot. Over 7 million people are eligible to vote, and tens of thousands have reportedly arrived from overseas.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a very moving and fateful moment,\u201d Netanyahu said. He told journalists after voting that he believes the Arab parties that could make or break the election \u201care receiving massive, truly massive, support. They are heading to the polls in unprecedented numbers.\u201d He urged supporters to forget about the beach or the barbecue and vote.<\/p>\n

\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

More than 31 per cent of Israelis voted by noon, the highest voter turnout by midday since 1977, according to figures by the Central Elections Committee.<\/p>\n

Inside Israel, the race is largely about security and who should serve to defend the country. Outside Israel, it\u2019s mainly about the country\u2019s reputation \u2014 and the security of Jewish people worldwide \u2014 after growing criticism over the war in Gaza and Jewish settler violence in the occupied West Bank.<\/p>\n

In Israel\u2019s fragmented parliamentary politics, no single party has ever won an outright parliamentary majority. There is a chance that neither Netanyahu\u2019s religious and ultranationalist coalition nor the group of parties hoping to remove him has enough support for a majority. That could set off weeks of negotiations before a leader is declared.<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s Arab-led parties could emerge as kingmakers \u2014 if other parties agree to join forces with them.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur vote will change the government,\u201d Mansour Abbas, head of the Islamist Ra\u2019am party, said while voting, adding that he hoped turnout would surpass 70 per cent in Arab communities. Arabs in Israel make up about 20% of the population.<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, known for taunting Palestinian detainees and saying some Palestinians in Gaza are \u201cnot even people,\u201d warned that \u201cit will be Mansour Abbas\u2019 government\u201d if Netanyahu and his allies don\u2019t win.<\/p>\n

\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Click
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\tEmotions run high among some voters\t\t\t<\/h2>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Some emotions were high. In Kiryat Shmona, a Netanyahu stronghold near the border with Lebanon, one man kicked and tore down a poster of Eisenkot.<\/p>\n

\n
\n\t\t\t\t\"Get\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n
\n

Get breaking National news<\/h2>\n

Get breaking Canada news delivered to your inbox as it happens so you won’t miss a trending story.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

The election is Israel\u2019s first national vote since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war in Gaza and related conflicts. In Tel Aviv, families of some killed on Oct. 7 or former hostages held a moment of silence. \u201cRemember all those whose voices are no more,\u201d said Yona Adam, whose daughter Mapal Adam was killed.<\/p>\n

\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Around 330,000 young Israelis, many facing compulsory military service under the shadow of war, are eligible to vote for the first time.<\/p>\n

Eisenkot started the day by visiting communities attacked on Oct. 7. \u201cIf someone in the government had a shred of responsibility, they would start the morning here\u201d in the communities near Gaza, he said.<\/p>\n

After voting, standing in a cheering crowd, Eisenkot called on all Israelis to vote to get rid of \u201cthe worst government Israel has known.\u201d He noted that victory wasn\u2019t certain, adding that \u201cwe are on perhaps the most critical day since the founding of the state.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eisenkot\u2019s Yashar party said it filed an urgent complaint over nine incidents in which its ballot slips were missing, damaged or turned over inside voting booths, and suggested a \u201csystematic and deliberate\u201d sabotage attempt.<\/p>\n

Overall, the acting director-general of the elections committee, Dean Livne, said the number of reports about irregularities or issues at polling stations was much lower than in previous elections.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Click
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

\n\t\t\t