Arab blocs projected to win 18 Knesset seats

Exit polls released after Tuesday's election indicate that Arab-led parties are projected to secure 18 seats in the 120-member Knesset. Channel 12 reported that voter participation among Palestinian citizens of Israel reached approximately 80 percent, surpassing the previous record set in 1999. The Central Elections Committee confirmed that overall turnout stood at 77.7 percent, the highest level recorded since 1999.

The polling suggests a tight race for power. The opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief of staff, is tied at 51 seats with the bloc led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Mansour Abbas, the leader of Ra'am, stated that the current numbers prevent the formation of a government. "With the numbers we have now, there is no government," Abbas told Channel 12. Ra'am currently holds five seats and served in the coalition from 2021 to 2022. Abbas noted that both major blocs sought his party's support before and after the vote.

Alon Pinkas, a former Israeli ambassador, warned that coalition negotiations could be difficult for Eisenkot's camp. Pinkas pointed out that his party pledged during the campaign to avoid coalitions with Arab parties. "There's a price to pay," Pinkas said, adding that Arab parties will likely make demands that Jewish-led coalitions may resist. He argued that Arab voters can no longer be excluded from the governing equation solely when their votes are needed.

Netanyahu's coalition made final appeals to voters on Tuesday, emphasizing the high turnout in Arab communities. Likud vehicles drove through Jerusalem playing the Islamic call to prayer over loudspeakers to encourage supporters to vote. On social media, Netanyahu shared images of long lines at polling stations in Arab neighborhoods. He warned that failure to vote could result in a government led by Mansour Abbas and Ahmad Tibi.

Arab politicians criticized the campaign tactics as inflammatory. Nour Odeh, reporting from Ramallah, described the election as an existential moment for Palestinian-Israelis. She noted that even habitual boycotters participated due to doubts about systemic change. The Knesset has passed more than 100 laws that discriminate against Palestinian citizens, who also face hurdles in accessing state funds.

Palestinian citizens constitute about 21 percent of Israel's 10 million residents. They have historically voted at lower rates than Jewish Israelis, but Tuesday's figures mark a sharp departure from that pattern.