Israel Election Set for October 27 Amid Forecast Deadlock

Israel will hold parliamentary elections on October 27, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu facing a close challenge from Gadi Eisenkot and polls indicating neither camp has a clear path to a governing majority. Voters will choose party lists for the 120-seat Knesset, after which parties must negotiate to form a government. The vote is the first parliamentary election since Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel and the wars that followed. Pre-election polling cited in the reports puts Netanyahu’s allies and the opposition blocs close together, with both projected to fall short of the 61 seats needed for a majority. These are forecasts, not election results. Eisenkot, a former Israel Defense Forces chief of staff, leads the Yashar party and is described in the reporting as Netanyahu’s principal challenger. Former prime minister Naftali Bennett is also competing, alongside other party leaders whose support could matter in coalition negotiations. Benny Gantz’s withdrawal from the race was reported as a development that could consolidate votes against Netanyahu. If neither bloc wins a majority, parties will have to seek partners to assemble a government. Arab parties could...