Netanyahu Claims ‘Absolute Majority’, Pledges Right-Wing Government

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his bloc had won an “absolute majority” of parliamentary seats following Tuesday’s (27 October) legislative election. He called for the formation of a right-wing national government.

According to AFP and Al Jazeera, on Wednesday (28 October 2026), Netanyahu said his Likud party was Israel’s largest party. He also called for a strong “right-wing national government”.

“We must form a strong right-wing government,” Netanyahu told cheering supporters.

Netanyahu said the final election results were expected within the next day or two. However, he said two things were already clear: his party was the largest, and no one could challenge it.

“What we are seeing is that the Likud party is the largest party; no one can challenge us,” he said.

“The second thing that is also clear is that the right-wing bloc has a majority. And it is an absolute majority,” he said.

Addressing his supporters, Netanyahu said a right-wing national government needed to be formed. He added that Israel must not depend on parties led by Arabs, whom he described as being “opposed to our existence”.

“The Jewish and Zionist majority must unite,” Netanyahu said.

“It is impossible to have a government supported by Arab parties,” he said.

The speech, delivered after 3am (0100 GMT), was brief by Netanyahu’s standards. Although he did not explicitly claim victory, he noted that his Likud party was projected to be the largest single party.

Israeli Arab parties made significant gains, potentially enabling the opposition to take power, although Netanyahu’s main rival, Gadi Eisenkot, has said he would not form a government with the minority groups.

Netanyahu also accused Israeli television channels of trying to discourage his supporters from voting by projecting stronger results for opposition parties.