TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel is holding pivotal elections on Tuesday in what many Israelis call the most consequential vote in their country's history after the last few years of war. Polls show Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu trailing in the race behind his main challenger, former military chief Gadi Eisenkot. But it may take weeks or months before it's clear who will be designated the winner.
That's because voters will not directly choose between Netanyahu and Eisenkot. Instead, they will vote for one of a dozen main parties running for office in the 120-seat parliament, known as the Knesset. The real contest will begin after election day, when party leaders try to assemble a governing coalition of at least 61 lawmakers.
Here is a guide to the leading candidates, the issues shaping the vote and what could happen next. Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving prime minister, is seeking another term in office. Netanyahu has led the most right-wing government in Israel's history.
His coalition has included Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, leaders of far-right, religious nationalist parties that are also running in this election, as well as two ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties. Netanyahu has led Israel through more than three years of war and regional conflict, from the Hamas-led attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, and the war in Gaza to fighting involving Lebanon, Iran, Syria and Yemen. He is campaigning on Israel's military achievements and his close relationship with President Trump, who recently endorsed him.
Netanyahu has also made confronting Iran, and ultimately seeking the fall of its regime, a central part of his campaign. His principal challenger is Gadi Eisenkot, a former chief of staff of the Israeli military who is running for prime minister for the first time as the leader of a new center-right party called Yashar, Hebrew for "Straight" or "Upright." Eisenkot's son, Gal, an Israeli soldier, was killed in Gaza during the war. Recent polls have shown Eisenkot has the strongest chance of replacing Netanyahu, although no party or political bloc appears assured of winning a parliamentary majority.
Eisenkot's Yashar includes figures from Israel's political center and moderate right. The opposition parties he would partner with range from the right and center to the liberal left. He has pledged not to join a government led by Netanyahu.
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