Israel’s count nears its end with no majority as police dismiss Likud’s fraud claims
With more than 90% of votes counted in Israel’s election, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc is projected at 53 seats, Gadi Eisenkot’s opposition bloc at 48 and Arab-led parties at a record 19, short of the 61 needed for a majority, The Guardian and Haaretz reported Thursday. Israeli police and the Central Elections Committee said there is no evidence for Likud’s claim that Arab parties “stole” the election. The results are still preliminary while absentee ballots are counted.
The count: The elections committee began counting about 500,000 absentee ballots, cast by soldiers, diplomats, prisoners and hospital patients, at 1 a.m. local time Thursday, and the count is expected to last until Thursday evening, The Guardian reported. Experts say those ballots are unlikely to change the seat projection significantly, the paper reported. Haaretz reported that with 92% counted, the balance between the blocs was unchanged.
The fraud claim: Likud claimed without evidence that parties representing Palestinian citizens of Israel had “stolen” the election and asked the police and the Shin Bet security service to investigate, The Guardian reported. A senior police official told Haaretz there are no indications of election fraud. Dean Livne, acting director general of the elections committee, said there was no basis for the claims, Haaretz and The Guardian reported, citing Kan public radio.
Foreign-interference review: The elections committee asked the Shin Bet to look into alleged foreign interference and wants findings within a week, before the Nov. 4 legal deadline to certify the results, The Guardian reported, citing the Associated Press. The source of the allegations is unclear. Eisenkot warned against using the allegations to delay the swearing-in of the new Knesset.
What comes next: Democrats leader Yair Golan said he would meet opposition leaders on Thursday for coalition talks, and he is so far the only opposition leader backing work with the Arab-led parties, The Guardian reported. President Isaac Herzog, who decides which candidate gets the first chance to form a government, urged parties to avoid another election.