Israel Election: Early Turnout Hits 45-Year High As ‘Bibi Fatigue’ Threatens Netanyahu’s Grip

Shin Bet chief David Zini has said as Israelis head to the polls in record numbers on Tuesday, “Voter turnout is high, and we can confidently tell the citizens of Israel that the elections are being monitored and conducted in a proper and inspiring manner.”

Today is Israel’s first national legislative election since the Oct.7, 2023 Hamas-led attack which unleashed years of war, particularly focused in the Gaza Strip. The Lebanon conflict is also still smoldering, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – whose political fate is being determined in the vote – is threatening renewed war on Iran.

“The elections for the 26th Knesset began on Tuesday morning, with 7,331,981 voters eligible to participate. 12,018 polling stations will be set up across the country, where voters can choose between 36 lists running to fill the 120 seats in Israel’s legislature,” Israel National News Arutz Sheva previews.

Polls opened at 7am and will close at 10pm (4pm US eastern).

Already the election is being widely described as having incredibly high voter turnout, which is being seen as not boding well for Netanyahu and his Likud party, suggesting “Bibi fatigue” – which is likely to result in more votes for parties either further to the right or to the left.

The Times of Israel is a noon update writes:

Voter turnout stood at 31.5% as of noon, according to the Central Elections Committee, up from 28.4% at the same time in the 2022 election.

It is the highest turnout at this hour since 1973, in the first election held after the Yom Kippur War.

77-year old “Bibi” has led Israel for nearly 19 of the past 30 years, and he’s constantly emphasized security, in many ways becoming a kind of permanent wartime prime minister. He’s overseen the decimation of Gaza in the wake of the Oct.7 attack, and wars in Lebanon, Syria, and occasional strikes on Yemen.

The Iran war remains the biggest conflict he’s overseen, which has seen ballistic missiles and drones rain down on Israeli cities and bases as part of previous Iranian retaliation waves. His opponents have charged him with seeking to restart the war under false pretenses in order to extend his power.

On election day, Times of Israel writes that “Final polls suggest a tight race between Netanyahu’s bloc of right-wing and ultra-Orthodox parties and the opposition, led by Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar. While the opposition appears to have more potential paths to a parliamentary majority, deep divisions among its leaders, particularly over cooperation with Arab parties, could prevent them from translating an electoral advantage into a governing coalition.”

As a reminder, voters elect a legislature rather than directly choosing their prime minister – based on a proportional representation system.

Also, “Unlike most other democracies, Israel has no geographic electoral districts. The entire country acts as a single constituency, meaning voters in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Haifa all choose from the same party lists, rather than electing individual lawmakers to represent their local areas,” TOI continues.

Like in 2019, there’s always the possibly that attempts by party heads to form a government fail, resulting in a parliamentary dissolution, and another election called. By 2022 there was no less than a fifth election after the collapse of the Bennett-Lapid government.

“Go vote!” Netanyahu urged Israelis in Hebrew as he and his wife Sara case their ballots at a polling station in Jerusalem.

But also, Netanyahu has warned in a new video to his supporters that “they are trying to steal the election from us,” in reference to three Ra’am operatives recently arrested on suspicion of bribing voters. Ra’am is a religious Arab Muslim party.

“It’s serious,” he says. “It’s criminal. They will reach every single person. You have been warned.”

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