Israel exit polls give opposition narrow edge, no majority

Exit polls in Israel’s election put the opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot narrowly ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc, but both camps fell short of the majority needed to form a government. Projections from the country’s major broadcasters placed Eisenkot’s bloc at 52 or 53 seats in the 120-member Knesset and Netanyahu’s bloc at about 50. A majority requires 61 seats. Likud, Netanyahu’s party, was projected to remain the largest single party, with 24 or 25 seats in several of the polls. The estimates are preliminary, not final results. One broadcaster’s projection differed substantially, putting Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc at 60 seats and the opposition bloc at 43. The Central Elections Committee is counting ballots, with official results scheduled for November 4. The broadcasters also projected a combined 17 or 18 seats for the Joint List and Raam, up from 10 seats in the 2022 election. The parties are not contesting the election as a single list. Their projected gains could affect coalition negotiations, though their eventual role will depend on final results and the positions of other parties. At 8 p.m., 74.3% of eligible voters had cast ballots, the...