Voter turnout was high, particularly in Arab communities, with Yousef Jabareen, leader of the Joint List, calling the election a “historic day.” He said voters had delivered a “clear and sharp” message against what he called the “government of bloodshed.” Mansour Abbas, leader of Raam, said the results marked a “new reality in the country,” as supporters at his party’s headquarters erupted in celebration.

Netanyahu, however, accused Arab citizens of “trying to steal the elections,” making overt appeals to anti-Arab prejudice to rally his right-wing base. Dean Livne, the acting director of the Central Election Committee, told reporters that there were no reports of widespread irregularities.

With no single bloc securing a majority, coalition-building will now determine the next government. President Isaac Herzog will invite the party leader he believes has the best chance of forming a government, a process that could take weeks or months. Dr. Nimrod Nir of Agam Labs said “the real political drama will begin the morning after the election.”

Despite the opposition bloc’s slight edge, Netanyahu’s Likud party is projected to remain the largest single party in the Knesset with 24 to 25 seats. Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, a Likud member, dismissed the opposition’s claims of victory, saying, “Likud is the largest party in Israel. It is always good to learn something from the past.”

Eisenkot, a former military chief, said the exit polls showed a “lack of confidence” in Netanyahu’s leadership, while Yair Lapid, the current opposition leader, called it a “crushing defeat.” Yair Golan of the Democrats said voters had “fired the Netanyahu government.”

Both Netanyahu and Eisenkot have ruled out forming a coalition with Arab parties, and a unity government between them faces major obstacles. The New York Times noted that Eisenkot’s voters deeply distrust Netanyahu, who has called him unfit to lead.

Official results will include votes from military bases, hospitals and embassies, which in the last election favored Netanyahu’s bloc. The full process could take weeks or months, with the last election in 2022 taking over 50 days to form a government.