Israelis vote on Tuesday in a high-stakes election on whether to extend Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s long tenure in power despite corruption allegations against him and a strong challenge by an ex-military chief.
Bolstered by his reputation as guarantor of Israel’s security and economic growth, Netanyahu has spent more than 13 years as premier and opinion polls show that he could well win again.
He would be on track to surpass founding father David Ben-Gurion as Israel’s longest-serving prime minister if he wins.
In a last-minute appeal to right-wing voters, Netanyahu said Saturday he was planning on annexing Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank if he wins.
The deeply controversial move could end hopes for a two-state solution with the Palestinians if done on a large scale.
Netanyahu is fighting for his political life while facing a dual threat in this year’s election.
The possibility of indictment hangs over him while a centrist alliance headed by political novice Benny Gantz is battling his Likud neck-and-neck in opinion polls. Some surveys have shown that Netanyahu’s party could win fewer seats than Gantz’s Blue and White, but still be best placed to form a governing coalition based on support from other right-wing parties allied to him.
Through much of the acrimonious campaign, polls have shown Likud and Blue and White with around 30 seats each in the 120-seat parliament -- far short of an outright majority and necessitating a coalition, as is usual in Israel.
Netanyahu heads what is already seen as the most rightwing government in Israel’s history, and if polling trends hold, his next coalition could be even further to the right. But analysts caution against drawing conclusions just yet, pointing to the number of undecided voters and the possibility that smaller rightwing parties fail to win the 3.25 percent required to enter parliament.
“The Likud bloc seems to have a majority,” said Gideon Rahat of the Israel Democracy Institute think tank.