Latest Exit Poll: Netanyahu and Eisenkot Tied
The latest exit polls released by leading Israeli television networks after voting ended show Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition level with the opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot. Both are projected to win 51 seats in parliament.
The updated figures, reported by AFP and Anadolu Agency on Wednesday (28 October 2026), came after earlier exit polls had given Eisenkot’s opposition a narrow lead over Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition. The new polls were released after voting concluded on Tuesday night (27 October), local time.
According to the latest exit polls released by Channels 11 and 13 in the early hours of Wednesday (28 October), Netanyahu’s coalition and the opposition bloc are each projected to win 51 seats in the Knesset.
An exit poll released by Channel 12, however, still shows a narrow lead for the opposition led by Eisenkot over Netanyahu’s coalition.
Whatever the provisional exit-poll figures, 51 seats would not be enough to secure a majority. At least 61 of the 120 seats being contested are needed to dominate parliament and form a new government.
The exit polls released by Israel’s three main television networks also project that Arab parties, which could break the political deadlock, will win a total of 18 seats.
Channel 13 projects that Likud, Netanyahu’s party, will remain the largest in parliament with 27 seats. It is followed by Eisenkot’s Yashar party with 23 seats, while another opposition alliance led by former prime minister Naftali Bennett is projected to win 13 seats.
Two Arab parties in Israeli politics are projected to win 11 seats for the Joint List and seven for the United Arab List, also known as Ra’am. Together, the Arab parties would hold 18 seats.
The latest projections erase the early lead held by Eisenkot’s opposition over Netanyahu’s coalition. Channel 13 had earlier projected 53 seats for the opposition, 50 for Netanyahu’s coalition and 17 for the Arab parties.
Channel 12 had reported a similar split, projecting 52 seats for the opposition, 50 for Netanyahu’s coalition and 18 for the Arab parties.
Exit polls are projections, not official results issued by Israel’s Central Elections Committee. Vote-counting began when polling stations closed at 10pm on Tuesday (27 October), local time, and is still under way.
The final official results of the Israeli election are expected to be announced by 4 November at the latest.
Turnout in Tuesday’s (27 October) election reached 77.7 per cent, the highest level since 1999. That was 7.1 percentage points higher than at the 2022 election.