Israel certifies vote results, rejecting Netanyahu fraud claims

Jerusalem — Israel's electoral authorities on Wednesday certified the results of the October 27 election, rejecting allegations of fraud promoted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and handing President Isaac Herzog the task of deciding who gets the first chance to form a government. The Central Elections Committee said it had audited 9,069 polling stations and was confident the results "accurately reflect the will of the voters".

"All complaints submitted by political factions have been reviewed and there were no findings indicating harm to the integrity of the election," the committee said. Al Jazeera reported that in the committee's five-member presidium, representatives of Yesh Atid and Blue and White voted to ratify the results while Likud and Shas abstained, with the chair, Supreme Court Justice Noam Sohlberg, casting the deciding vote.

Netanyahu and his allies have repeatedly claimed, without evidence, that Arab-led parties "stole" the election, possibly with foreign help. Justice Sohlberg said those casting doubt on the results pose "a real danger" to Israel's democracy.

The arithmetic leaves no easy path. Netanyahu's bloc won 53 seats and Gadi Eisenkot's opposition bloc 48, with the Arab-led parties Ra'am and the Joint List securing a record 19, according to the certified figures. Neither side holds the 61 seats needed for a majority in the 120-seat Knesset. Eisenkot, a former military chief, could reach the threshold with Arab parties' backing, but some in the opposition have baulked at relying on non-Jewish lawmakers' votes. He has accused Likud of attempting a "pogrom against democracy", The Hindu reported.

The dispute has spread to the security services. The Shin Bet told the committee that intelligence pointed to foreign funding and influence operations involving "thousands of people and possibly more", The Times of Israel reported, though law enforcement sources told Haaretz they were unaware of any operation of that size. Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara said she would not question anyone without evidence; Likud accused her of trying to "obstruct the investigation and to cover up this serious case of manipulation of the electoral process by foreign actors".

Israel held five elections between 2019 and 2022 after repeated deadlocks, and Netanyahu took 58 days to form a government after the last vote in November 2022. He faces corruption charges and the loss of immunity if he leaves office. Herzog, who has called for "fresh thinking", now begins two days of consultations, starting with the smaller parties.

Once Herzog names a candidate, that person will have 28 days, with a possible 14-day extension, to build a coalition. If all efforts fail, Israelis could be back at the polls early next year — an outcome Herzog and party leaders on both sides say they want to avoid.