Record turnout in Knesset election as Netanyahu urges supporters to vote

Turnout in Israel’s election reached 31.5% by noon, the highest at that point since 1973. Netanyahu urgently urged his supporters to vote, claiming Arab voters were flooding the polls, while Ben-Gvir called on Israelis to support his party outside Ofer Prison.

Turnout in Israel’s Knesset election reached 31.5% by noon, according to the Central Elections Committee, compared with 28.4% at the same point in the 2022 election. It was the highest turnout at that time since the 1973 election, which followed the October War. More than 2.3 million voters had cast their ballots by midday.

Netanyahu: Arab voters are flooding the polls

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued an urgent appeal to Likud voters in a video, saying: "You must go out and vote. No beach, no barbecue—everyone must go out and vote for Likud." Netanyahu claimed that Arab voters were "racing to the polls" and "trying to steal the election from us," referring to the arrest of three activists from the United Arab List on suspicion of bribing voters.

Netanyahu warned that an opposition victory "would put an end to the Jewish state as we know it." The Central Elections Committee, however, said there was no evidence of systematic vote manipulation following complaints from several parties.

Ben-Gvir urges voters on behalf of party outside Ofer Prison

Outside Ofer Prison, where Palestinian prisoners are held, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir urged Israelis to vote for his party, "Jewish Power." He claimed that the prisoners, whom he called "terrorists," hoped his party would not be part of the next government so their previous detention conditions could return. He said voting for his party was necessary "to continue making terrorists’ lives hell."

Former Likud Knesset member Osnat Mark said: "If we lose the election today, there will be no country called Israel in five years."

Queues and delays in Arab towns

Long queues and slow identity-verification procedures were reported in Arab towns. Adalah said it had received complaints of delays in the Galilee and the south, while Haaretz reported that police entered polling stations in Tel as-Sabi and Segev Shalom in the Negev. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich attributed the high turnout to "exceptional voting rates in the Arab sector and left-wing strongholds."

In Tel Aviv, police arrested a man carrying a large knife near Democratic Party leader Yair Golan. The party said he had tried to stab Golan, while police denied that an attempted stabbing had occurred. Voting will continue until 10 p.m. local time, and anyone still in line at that time will be allowed to cast a ballot.