A Fateful Choice: Will This Election Change Israel?
Crisis Group
C
Crisis Group
Original Source
Israel's Knesset elections on October 27, 2026, represent a pivotal moment as voters choose between Netanyahu's hard-right government and a centrist opposition led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot. Yet the deeper question remains whether any new government can deliver meaningful change on major issues affecting millions of Palestinians and Israel's international standing.
A Fateful Choice: Will This Election Change Israel? | International Crisis Group
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A Fateful Choice: Will This Election Change Israel?
Online Event
*Tuesday, 20 October 2026*
*10am Washington, DC | 4pm Brussels | 5pm Tel Aviv*
*Please register* *here* *if you would like to attend this online event.*
The Knesset elections on 27 October could be the most consequential in Israel’s short history. After four years of hard-right government under Benjamin Netanyahu, and three years of war on multiple fronts since the Hamas attack of 7 October 2023, Israelis head to the polls with starkly different hopes for their future.
About a dozen political parties are expected to cross the threshold needed to enter the 120-seat parliament. Two main blocs, of nearly equal weight according to polls, face off against each other: an alliance of hard-right parties dominated by Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister and head of the Likud party, and an opposing camp led by Gadi Eisenkot, a former army chief of staff and head of Yashar, a centre-right party he founded last year. A third group, made up of parties that represent Israel’s Palestinian minority, is projected to capture a smaller but critical share of seats.
Whichever bloc comes out on top, a question hangs over the vote: has the Israeli political “centre” shifted so much that even new leaders may not bring real change – at least, not on big issues that matter to the rest of the world, such as accommodating the 7.5 million Palestinians that li
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A Fateful Choice: Will This Election Change Israel?
Online Event
*Tuesday, 20 October 2026*
*10am Washington, DC | 4pm Brussels | 5pm Tel Aviv*
*Please register* *here* *if you would like to attend this online event.*
The Knesset elections on 27 October could be the most consequential in Israel’s short history. After four years of hard-right government under Benjamin Netanyahu, and three years of war on multiple fronts since the Hamas attack of 7 October 2023, Israelis head to the polls with starkly different hopes for their future.
About a dozen political parties are expected to cross the threshold needed to enter the 120-seat parliament. Two main blocs, of nearly equal weight according to polls, face off against each other: an alliance of hard-right parties dominated by Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister and head of the Likud party, and an opposing camp led by Gadi Eisenkot, a former army chief of staff and head of Yashar, a centre-right party he founded last year. A third group, made up of parties that represent Israel’s Palestinian minority, is projected to capture a smaller but critical share of seats.
Whichever bloc comes out on top, a question hangs over the vote: has the Israeli political “centre” shifted so much that even new leaders may not bring real change – at least, not on big issues that matter to the rest of the world, such as accommodating the 7.5 million Palestinians that li
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Tags:#إسرائيل#الانتخابات#نتنياهو#السياسة الإسرائيلية#الشرق الأوسط#القضية الفلسطينية
Source: Crisis Group
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