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The party of Israel’s veteran ex-premier Benjamin Netanyahu was set to come first in Tuesday’s vote, initial projections indicated, but there was no guarantee he could form a government.
The projections showed the hawkish politician, Israel’s longest serving premier, could clinch a narrow majority with the anticipated backing of ultra-Orthodox Jewish and far-right parties.
However, the tally could shift as official results come in, and whoever is tapped to form a government will need support from multiple smaller parties to clinch a 61-seat majority in the 120-seat legislature.
If the first forecasts hold, that would end the short reign of an alliance of eight parties under centrist caretaker Prime Minister Yair Lapid that managed to oust Netanyahu last year before itself collapsing.
The margins appeared wafer-thin, as expected in the bitterly divided nation holding its fifth election in less than four years, but the early signs were positive for the 73-year-old leader of the right-wing Likud party.
Projections from three Israeli networks put Likud on track for a first place finish, within 30 or 31 seats in the 120-member parliament, the Knesset.
That number, combined with projected tallies for the extreme-right Religious Zionism alliance and the two ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties gave the bloc backing Netanyahu between 61 or 62 seats, the first projections showed.
But those can change, and previous Israeli elections have showed that slight variations as the votes are officially counted can dramatically alter the outlook.
High turnout
Lapid’s…
Source : france24
