15:48
On Tuesday, October 27th, Israelis head to the polls. It's been more than 3 years since the Hamasled attacks on Israel that triggered the war in Gaza. And now voters will decide whether Benjamin Netanyahu gets yet another term as prime minister or whether Israel turns the page. The polls suggest a close race between Netanyahu, leader of the right-wing liquid party, and the former army chief Gardi Eisenhard, the leader of centrist Yasha party. Here's how it works. Israelis vote for parties not directly for prime minister. Those parties form alliances to create a majority coalition at the Israeli parliament, the Knesset. No single party has ever won a majority on its own. Here are some of the main names to
watch. At 77, Benjamin Netanyahu is Israel's longest serving prime minister and a dominant force in Israeli politics. His supporters point to his record on security and the economy and his close ties with President Trump. His critics say he's responsible for the failure that led up to October 7th and that he mishandled the wars that followed. He also faces an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court over allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity and corruption charges at home. He denies any wrongdoing. Nathan Yahoo's main challenger and lead of centrist party, Gardi Eisen Court, grew up in working-class family of Jewish Moroccan immigrants. He sat in on Nathan Yahoo's poor cabinet and walked away after 8
months, saying the prime minister had no clear strategy. He has positioned himself as a moderate alternative to Nathan Yahu, but remains hawkish on security. He is credited with formulating a military strategy calling for the use of disproportionate power in areas from which militants launch attacks. If he wins, Eisenhot could become the first Israeli prime minister of Misrai descent in coalition. Former Prime Minister Napali Bennett is also running, heading a joint electoral list called together with centrist Yahid Labid. Bennett is religiously observant and right-wing. He opposes a Palestinian state and supports Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. He served as Nathan Yahoo's chief of staff and
briefly as prime minister in 2021 under a power sharing agreement with Laprit. Itamar Beng is Israel's national security minister and leads the far-right Jewish power whose strong showing secured him a position in the current cabinet. Has multiple convictions including for supporting a terrorist organization and inciting racism. Beng has laid out plans for what he says would be a voluntary immigration of about 2 million Palestinians from Gaza where he has advocated to rebuild Jewish settlements. If his party gains seats on Tuesday, Beng could hold significant influence in coalition negotiations and push the next government further to the right. Sur Abas, a member of the parliament since 2019.
He leads the Arab Islamist party, Raham. In 2021, it became the first Arabled party to join a governing coalition. Abbas is campaigning on local issues, especially crime in Arab communities, hoping that it will get more seats at the Ganess and Court potential coalition partners.
