Facts
- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party claimed on October 29, 2026, that the Israeli election was stolen, PBS NewsHour reported. Preliminary results give Netanyahu’s bloc 53 of 120 Knesset seats, down from the 68 it held at its peak. The main opposition won 48 and Arab-led parties won 19. A 61-seat majority is needed. Results must still be certified and submitted to the president next Wednesday.
- The head of the Central Elections Committee, Supreme Court Justice Noam Sohlberg, said ‘serious suspicions’ of foreign interference had been brought to him. In a letter to the Shin Bet security agency, he said he could not verify the claims but asked for an investigation. The committee wants findings within a week, PBS reported.
- The committee’s acting director general, Dean Livne, said of the probe: ‘It does not affect the final results.’ The committee also rejected allegations of systematic violations of electoral integrity, PBS reported. The probe relies on classified intelligence, the committee said.
- Likud said, without offering evidence, that the interference was ‘aimed at facilitating a foreign takeover of the Knesset.’ Israeli media reported that Likud members accused Qatar. Qatar denied the allegations, calling them ‘ridiculous and dangerous.’
- WORLD Radio reported that Netanyahu pointed to arrests in an alleged vote-buying scheme involving members of the Ra’am party. Ra’am denies wrongdoing, according to WORLD.
- The Shin Bet said its probe was not meant to ‘cast aspersions’ on a population that ‘exercised its right to vote in a democratic and lawful manner.’
- President Isaac Herzog called for a full investigation, calling it a ‘sensitive moment,’ and warned against tarnishing an entire community.
- PBS noted that its article contained no police statement and cited no specific public evidence for the interference claims.
Quotes
Likud, in a statement: “The elections in Israel have been stolen!”
Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the main opposition bloc, said Likud is trying to delegitimize the results: “They are doing this because they lost.”
Yair Golan, of the Democrats, accused Netanyahu of “attempting to undermine the election results through an ugly delegitimization campaign.”
Mansour Abbas, of Ra’am, welcomed the investigation, said his party had nothing to do with the case and accused Netanyahu of incitement.
Source Read PBS NewsHour’s report here.
Image Knesset Israeli Parliament Building (41404895850), cc0.
