Netanyahu bloc finishes ahead in Israel vote – but well short of majority

In Israel's recent general election, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition finished ahead of the opposition but fell significantly short of a majority. According to final results from the Central Elections Committee, Netanyahu's right-wing and far-right parties secured 53 of the 120 seats in the Knesset, with his Likud party remaining the largest faction at 27 seats.

The opposition bloc, led by centrist Gadi Eisenkot, won 48 seats. Arab party groupings Raam and the Joint List emerged as potential kingmakers, together winning 19 seats. The fragmented outcome means that no single bloc has reached the 61-seat threshold needed to form a government, and the possibility of another election exists if negotiations fail.

Ran by allegations of foreign funding for Arab-Israeli groups, the Raamgate scandal has set the stage for prolonged coalition talks. Netanyahu's Likud party accused Raam of receiving money from Qatar, a Gulf powerbroker with ties to Hamas, to finance vote-buying operations. However, both Raam and the Joint List denied any wrongdoing, with Raam leader Mansour Abbas welcoming an investigation.

Opposition figures accused Netanyahu of attempting to undermine confidence in the election results, while Netanyahu's past ties to Qatar were called into question. The final tally came after Netanyahu's camp amplified unproven allegations of foreign funding, accusations rejected by Arab-majority lists and Qatar.