Israel Election 2026: The parties, blocs and battles that will shape Israel's future - explainer

This election will be the first to take place since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack, with the political landscape and the issues at the forefront of voters’ minds having shifted significantly since the previous vote in 2022.

Some of the central issues include the IDF’s severe manpower crisis after three years of war, contentious haredi (ultra-Orthodox) conscription legislation, and calls for a state commission of inquiry into the government’s failures surrounding the attack.

Meanwhile, traditional election issues, such as the establishment of a Palestinian state, have moved further to the background as Israel’s security outlook has changed.

Another major issue is the fate of long-serving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has led Israel for a total of 19 years.

Prof. Ofer Kenig, a political expert and research fellow with the Israel Democracy Institute’s Political Reform Program, told The Jerusalem Report that the upcoming election will “mark the direction in which Israel’s democracy is heading.”

Kenig, who is also a lecturer at Ashkelon Academic College, said that the outgoing coalition differed from previous Netanyahu-led governments in that it was “full Right,” a change that was felt by Israeli society due to stark policy changes over the past four years.

“Most Israelis do want some kind of broad government – without the extremists. Without the haredim and without the Arabs, for that matter,” Kenig noted.

Among the major issues will be the haredi draft laws and a state commission of inquiry, along with key domestic policies such as the rise in the cost of living.

Additionally, he said it will be interesting to see what happens with the political alliances between the parties hovering on the electoral threshold, what is becoming known as “the third bloc,” a new batch of parties offering an alternative to the current right-wing parties.

Kenig said it was important to also keep watch on the Arab parties, noting that the formation of a new Joint List could weaken Netanyahu’s bloc, but, it could also complicate the formation of a government for the opposition bloc.

He said that Netanyahu’s recent calls to form a “broad national government,” suggest that the Prime Minister is facing a “less than optimal situation” as his own party, Likud, continues to slip in the polls.

“If [Netanyahu] were in a much better position in the polls, I’m quite convinced we wouldn’t hear that this was the Likud’s main election slogan,” Kenig noted, adding that there appears to be a shift in Netanyahu’s strategy away from attempting to win to “just trying not to lose.”

Netanyahu may be aware that he “doesn’t have the cards in his hands to win,” and could instead be focusing on not losing, Kenig said.

The question might no longer be whether Likud can remain the largest party, but whether Netanyahu can assemble a coalition with himself at the helm.

In that case, Kenig theorized, Netanyahu could seek an election result in which the opposition bloc falls short of a majority, allowing him to remain in power as head of a transitional government until another election.”

So, even as Israelis cast their vote at the ballot box, the real fight might come afterwards with coalition haggling deciding the outcome of this fateful election.

Likud, the ruling party, is led by Netanyahu. The party held 32 seats in the 25th Knesset, but recently has been polling far less, at approximately 22 seats.

The party is one of the few to hold primaries to elect its Knesset slate; however, its new list also includes eight slots hand-picked by the prime minister himself, leading to controversy and internal tensions within Likud.

Likud introduced the controversial political commission of inquiry bill to probe the October 7 attack, as Netanyahu has consistently spoken out against judicial appointments leading the investigation.

Initially, at the beginning of the government’s term, the party pushed for a contentious judicial reform amid an ongoing rift with the judiciary, which led to mass protests across the country.

Likud also introduced, and passed, the communications reform bill, which controversially overhauls regulation of Israel’s media and broadcasting sector.

In addition, throughout his latest term in power, Netanyahu has been under criminal trial both in Israel and abroad. At home, he is being tried in three separate cases, and abroad, an arrest warrant for alleged war crimes was issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Otzma Yehudit, or Jewish Power, led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, held six seats in the recent Knesset and is now polling at approximately eight seats.

In the previous election, the party ran on a joint ticket with the Religious Zionist Party, allowing them to cross the electoral threshold. One condition of Otzma Yehudit’s coalition agreements with Netanyahu was a law mandating the death penalty for terrorists. The controversial legislation, which is largely aimed at Palestinians convicted of terror offenses, was passed in March 2026.

As National Security Minister, Ben-Gvir also led reforms in Israel’s prison service, significantly worsening conditions for Palestinian inmates, arguing that both the death penalty and harsher prison conditions create deterrence.

Internationally, Ben-Gvir’s statements and actions, including repeated trips to the Temple Mount with calls to break the status quo, have led multiple European countries to declare him persona non grata.

Smotrich’s platform has been focused on Jewish identity, settlement expansion, and Israeli sovereignty in the West Bank.

During the previous term, RZP ran the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, with Minister Ofir Sofer introducing tax exemptions for new immigrants and increased recognition of foreign diplomas.

MK Simcha Rothman was the driving force behind efforts to significantly weaken the attorney-general’s power to influence and have oversight over the government.

Additionally, Smotrich has pushed to expand Israeli settlements in the West Bank, with over 100 initiated during his tenure, sparking tension for Israel diplomacy and leading him to also be declared persona non grata by several European countries.

There are two haredi parties in the Knesset: The Sephardi Shas Party, led by MK Arye Deri, and the Ashkenazi United Torah Judaism Party, led by MK Yitzhak Goldknopf.

Shas held 11 seats in the previous Knesset and is currently polling at around seven, while UTJ held seven and is polling at nine.

Netanyahu has relied on the haredi parties as key coalition partners, even though they have faced increasing criticism over their stance regarding ultra-Orthodox enlistment amid the IDF’s severe manpower shortage. Despite this, the leaders have continued to push for legislation that critics argue will not increase haredi representation in the army.

Two other contentious pieces of legislation sponsored by the haredi parties, which were passed by the Knesset were a bill to enshrine Torah study as a fundamental value in the country’s Basic Law, along with a bill to temporarily freeze arrests of haredi draft evaders.

A central unifying issue in the opposition bloc’s campaign is the promise to establish of a state commission of inquiry to investigate the government’s failures surrounding the October 7 attack.

Opposition parties argue that Netanyahu bears responsibility for those failures and can no longer remain in office.

The parties in the bloc have all pushed to form a framework to enforce haredi conscription to the IDF, though some party leaders have expressed a more hardline stance on the matter.

Eisenkot was previously a member of the Blue and White Party, led by MK Benny Gantz. After resigning from the Knesset in 2025, he stated that he would not serve as second-in-command and has repeatedly rejected offers to unite with other parties.

Unlike the other parties in the opposition bloc, Eisenkot’s approach to drafting haredim has been more lenient, and he has also indicated that he would be willing to sit in a government with Shas.

He has also pledged to conduct a state commission of inquiry into government failures on October 7, claiming the government used the attack to evade responsibility.

The party has presented itself as centrist, and Eisenkot himself appears more reserved, unlike the loud personas politicians tend to project.

As a bereaved father who lost his son and two of his nephews during the Israel-Hamas War, he appears to speak to Israelis on the ground who have suffered from the devastation of the last three years.

Bennett became prime minister in June 2021, entering a rotation government with Lapid. His government was the first in Israel’s history to include an Arab party, Ra’am, in the coalition – a highly controversial move.

He has since taken a firm stance against including any Arab faction in a future coalition. Additionally, Bennett has also said he would not form a coalition with the haredi parties, calling to cut all state funding for anyone evading military service and reverse contentious haredi-backed legislation passed by the outgoing government.

Bennett said that during his time away from the political scene, he consulted experts to prepare a comprehensive plan for the country’s future, which includes the establishment of a written constitution, raising competition in the market to lower the cost of living, improving transportation, cutting down the crime rates, and investing in AI to advance the country’s technology and defense.

The Democrats Party, led by Yair Golan, held four seats under its previous name, Labor, in the 25th Knesset. It is currently polling at about 10 seats.

Golan is a reserve major-general and served as the IDF’s deputy chief of staff under Eisenkot.

Though Golan has previously expressed support for a two-state solution with the Palestinians, and other party members have called for a Palestinian state, after October 7, Golan has argued that the approach should be more nuanced.

The party has committed to a list incorporating gender parity through a zipper system alternating between women and men, while also guaranteeing representation for Meretz, which merged with Labor in 2024 to help form the Democrats, the rural sector, and minority communities, including an Arab candidate in a realistic slot.

It held internal primaries to determine its slate.

It is notably one of the only parties in the opposition bloc that actively calls to form a coalition with the Arab parties, leading to tension.

Yisrael Beytenu, led by Avigdor Liberman, held six seats in the 25th Knesset and is currently polling at about 10 seats.

Liberman has been a fixture in Israelis politics for more than three decades, serving in key government positions such as defense minister, foreign minister, and finance minister.

Yisrael Beytenu is traditionally hawkish on security, calling for a more decisive stance to fully eliminate Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Iranian regime.

In addition, the party advocates for expanding Israeli settlements in the West Bank, while also strongly advocating for the separation of religion and state.

Liberman is fierce critic of Netanyahu’s current government and has been open about his aim of becoming prime minister. He has taken a hardline on haredi conscription, calling for legislation to ensure there will be no exemptions, and for those who do dodge service to be prevented from receiving any financial aid from the state.

Blue and White, led by former IDF chief of staff Benny Gantz, held eight seats in the 25th Knesset – out of the 12 belonging to the National Unity alliance – and is currently polling below the electoral threshold ahead of the upcoming election.

Blue and White has been distanced from the opposition bloc seeking to replace Netanyahu in the upcoming elections, as Gantz has said he would not object to teaming up with Netanyahu, calling for a “broad Zionist government” to bring together parties on both sides of the aisle.

While underscoring the importance of a broad Zionist government, Gantz has drawn a red line to sitting in a coalition with the haredi or Arab parties.

Despite the many MKs leaving his party, such as Eisenkot and Chili Tropper, Gantz has repeatedly asserted that he has no intention of resigning.

Numerous reports say he is considering joining a political alliance, and he has said that would ensure he does what is necessary to regain support and pass the electoral threshold.

Hadash-Ta’al is a reduced Joint List that agreed to run together in the 2022 election, and Balad, which has fails to pass the electoral threshold in polls, recently signed an agreement to join the two, while still leaving the door open for Ra’am to join.

Despite polls showing that the Arab parties would earn more seats together, Abbas has held off on joining the Arab alliance out of hope that his Ra’am Party could be invited to the next coalition.

The parties all call to address the spike in Arab crime and advance equality for Arab citizens, and have stated that their main objective would be to remove Netanyahu and far-right figures such as Ben-Gvir from government. The parties also advocate for a Palestinian state.

Amid tensions over the haredi draft issue, three new right-wing parties have emerged, voicing dissatisfaction with the existing right-wing parties in Netanyahu’s coalition: Knesset member Chili Tropper and former minister Yoaz Hendel’s Zionist Home-The Reservists, former ambassador and minister Gilad Erdan and Knesset member Yuli Edelstein’s Unity Party, and Brig.-Gen. (res.) Ofer Winter’s People of Israel.

According to recent polls, these parties are hovering near the electoral threshold, and all have been informally termed the “Third Bloc” by pundits. All three state that they aim to provide a “political home” for right-wing voters who feel no existing party reflects their beliefs.

Tropper and Hendel have stated that a primary condition for them to join a coalition would be the passage of a draft law requiring haredim to serve in the IDF, as well as universal conscription.

Similarly, Erdan and Edelstein, both former members of Likud, have vowed to uphold right-wing principles and fight for universal IDF conscription.

Winter’s faction, which includes Arab-Israeli activist Yoseph Haddad and former Jerusalem deputy mayor Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, as well as reservists and bereaved relatives, aims to bring together people who were not part of the political or security failures surrounding October 7, but who fought during the war, paid personal costs and are now prepared to enter politics.

According to polls, Winter’s roster could win five seats, largely at the expense of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s Religious Zionist Party, which would then fall beneath the electoral threshold.

With at least two of the parties potentially securing four seats each, these new factions may find themselves in the role of kingmaker in the upcoming election. ■