With 97 percent of the votes counted, Israeli opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu’s conservative group appeared set for a clean election victory on Wednesday.
According to Israeli media estimates, his right-wing religious faction has secured a majority of 65 of the 120 members in parliament.
With 31 parliamentary seats, Netanyahu’s Likud party was reportedly the most powerful.
With 24 seats, incumbent Prime Minister Yair Lapid’s Future Party was expected to finish second.
For the first time in Israeli history, an extreme right-wing alliance was poised to finish third for the first time in Israeli history.
The Religious Zionist Party of Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir was considered as a prospective kingmaker for Netanyahu.
The leftwing Meretz party and the Arab party Balad may fall short of the 3.25 percent threshold.
The final result was expected by Thursday.
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh raised concerns on Wednesday about Israel’s swing to the right.
He asked the international community to protect our people against aggressive Israeli policies after racist parties came to power in Israel.
The election outcome was the natural result of years of rising extremism and racism in Israeli society.
He said this in a statement, adding that “we had no illusions that the Israeli election will produce a partner for peace.’’
When the polls closed at 10 p.m. (2100 CET) on Tuesday, 71.3 percent of the nearly 6.8 million eligible voters had voted.
Netanyahu, who was being investigated for corruption, was still planning his second term as Prime Minister.
The 73year old Netanyahu served as prime minister several times more than any other person in Israeli history for a decade and a half.
In order to avoid being prosecuted, Netanyahu is attempting to put together a coalition of ultra-right religious leaders.
Due in part to interpersonal conflicts and a low bar for parliamentary entry, Israel’s party system is highly fractious and interest-driven.
Even groups from similar camps frequently have trouble forming partnerships. (dpa/NAN)
