Israel election set for Oct. 27 with blocs short of majority

Israelis are scheduled to vote on October 27 in the country’s first national election since the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023, with pre-election polling indicating that neither major bloc is on track to secure a parliamentary majority. The outcome and coalition negotiations remain unsettled because voting has not yet taken place. The election is the sixth national vote since 2019 and the first in 38 years to occur at the natural end of a full Knesset term. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking another term while facing a corruption trial, which he denies. His Likud-led bloc is competing with a Jewish-led opposition alliance. A KAN poll published before the ban on new surveys took effect projected 52 seats for the opposition alliance and 50 for Netanyahu’s bloc in the 120-seat Knesset. The projection is not an election result; unaffiliated parties were expected to take the remaining seats. Neither major bloc is projected to reach the 61 seats needed for a majority on its own. Israeli voters choose party lists, with seats distributed proportionally. After the election, parties have 28 days to form a coalition, with a possible extension of up to 14 days. If no group...