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Israel election guide: How 120-seat Knesset vote works, key candidates, and what's at stake for Gaza

Israelis vote on October 27 under a system where no party has ever won a majority alone. Here is how the Knesset vote works, who is in the race and how a government is formed.

5 min read Oct 27, 2026 04:39 AM IST First published on: Oct 26, 2026 at 09:35 PM IST

Pedestrians pass an election campaign billboard featuring Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, and his main rival, opposition candidate Gadi Eisenkot, with a Hebrew message reading "If it's not Gadi, it's Bibi," in Ramat Gan, Israel. (Photo: AP)

Israelis vote on Tuesday, October 27, in the first election since the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023 and the wars that followed in Gaza, Iran, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. Polling published on Friday shows Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a tight race with Gadi Eisenkot, a former head of the Israel Defense Forces.…