Netanyahu survives another day with unexpectedly clear backing of Israeli Jews
SPY•With nearly 86% of votes tallied, Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc was on course to win 53 seats, compared with 48 for rival Gadi Eisenkot’s opposition bloc. The shekel weakened about 1.6% to 3.10 per U.S. dollar, while Tel Aviv’s main stock indexes fell more than 3%.
1. Election count
With nearly 86% of votes tallied, Israeli broadcasters said Netanyahu’s bloc of right-wing, far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties was on course to win 53 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, against 48 for Eisenkot’s opposition bloc. Parties representing Israelis of Arab descent were projected to win 19 seats. Counting continued, and the results could still change.
2. Caretaker government
Netanyahu lost his bloc’s narrow parliamentary majority, but his opponents appeared to have little chance of unseating him without Arab-party support that many Jewish leaders reject. Netanyahu called for a “strong, right-wing national government” and said Israel faced an opportunity to act against Iran with U.S. President Donald Trump. Eisenkot said Netanyahu had lost public support, urged him to leave politics and warned security officials against political pressure.
3. Market reaction
The prospect of a caretaker government without a parliamentary majority weighed on Israeli financial markets. The shekel weakened around 1.6% to 3.10 per U.S. dollar, and Tel Aviv’s key benchmark stock indexes fell more than 3%. Turnout was 77.7%, the highest in more than two decades.
