Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has issued another election-day warning about Arab voter turnout, urging his supporters to head to the polls.
In a video shared on social media, Arab Israelis, apparently from Bedouin communities, can be seen riding horses and camels and travelling in cars in what appears to be an impromptu parade.
Text over the footage reads: “They’re racing to bring down the Right!”
The accompanying caption says: “They’re already celebrating in the strongholds of the Joint List and Ra’am. We must stop them! Get out and vote Likud!”
The message follows earlier claims by Netanyahu that Arab voters were “trying to steal the election”, prompting accusations of incitement from Arab party leaders.
Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party has opposed a request by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party to extend voting beyond 10pm.
Yashar said “no unusual incident has occurred that would justify approving the request” and accused Netanyahu of preparing to challenge the election’s integrity.
The ultra-Orthodox Shas party and far-right Otzma Yehudit have also joined Likud’s request to the Central Elections Committee.
Election officials have already confirmed that anyone still queuing at 10pm will be allowed to vote.
British-Israeli former Hamas hostage Emily Damari has cast her ballot in Israel’s general election, reflecting on the contrast between her time in captivity and her freedom today.
“Just think that just a year and-a-half ago I had to beg for water… Today I am free, and exercising my right to vote, which is also my duty,” she wrote on Instagram.
“To vote and influence the future of our country. I used to fight for the right to live, today I’m voting for how we live. Nothing should be taken for granted ????????”
Quite disgusting racism from Likud.
Voter turnout across Israel’s major cities ranged from 46 percent in Haifa to 51 percent in Rishon LeZion, according to figures shared by Israeli journalist Amit Segal at 3.27pm.
Turnout stood at 50 percent in Tel Aviv, 48 percent in Jerusalem and 47 percent in Be’er Sheva.
Among cities traditionally associated with Netanyahu’s Likud party, Afula recorded 51 percent turnout, Ashkelon 49 percent and Tiberias 47 per cent.
Bat Yam had the lowest turnout among the cities listed, at 40 percent.
One of the more intriguing newcomers to Israel’s election is The Haredi Public, a new ultra-Orthodox party challenging the decades-long political dominance of Shas and United Torah Judaism.
Led by Moti Leitner, deputy mayor of Beit Shemesh, the party is breaking with the traditional Haredi establishment on several key issues. While advocating continued exemptions from military service for full-time yeshiva students, it supports IDF enlistment for ultra-Orthodox men who are not studying, the introduction of core subjects such as English and mathematics into Haredi schools, and greater participation in the workforce.
In a historic first for Israeli ultra-Orthodox politics, the party has included women on its Knesset list. Dr Nechumi Yaffe, a political psychology researcher at Tel Aviv University and visiting scholar at Harvard Business School, is ranked third, while Ziva Glantz holds fourth place.
Yaffe, a former adviser on Haredi affairs to Israel’s National Security Council who helped mobilise ultra-Orthodox volunteers following the 7 October attacks, has revealed that she was forced to move house after receiving threatening messages over her political activities. She told Israel’s Channel 12 that she no longer discloses her address, fearing further intimidation.
Other party supporters have also reported threats and bullying, including alleged threats of dismissal from their jobs and the expulsion of their children from ultra-Orthodox schools.
The intimidation allegations have continued into election day, with party activists reporting that campaign stalls were vandalised outside polling stations in several ultra-Orthodox cities, including Bnei Brak and Beit Shemesh.
Despite mounting pressure from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who reportedly attempted to persuade Leitner to withdraw over concerns that his party could draw votes away from his political allies, Leitner has refused to abandon the race.
Although opinion polls have consistently placed The Haredi Public below the 3.25 percent electoral threshold, Leitner insists his party could deliver an election-night surprise. He argues that many potential supporters are reluctant to reveal their voting intentions for fear of social repercussions, creating a pool of so-called “shy voters” that traditional polls may be missing.
Whether those voters materialise at the ballot box remains to be seen. But the party’s emergence has already challenged some long-standing conventions of Israeli ultra-Orthodox politics.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party and its ultra-Orthodox coalition partner Shas have asked Israel’s Central Elections Committee to extend voting hours beyond 10pm.
Likud did not give a reason for its request, while Shas cited record voter turnout and concerns that people waiting in queues could miss out on voting.
However, election officials have already confirmed that anyone still queuing at 10pm will be allowed to cast their ballot.
The town of Timorim in central Israel has recorded the country’s highest voter turnout so far, with 91.6 percent of eligible residents casting their ballots by 4pm.
According to the Central Elections Committee, several other small communities have also reported turnout above 75 percent.
Among larger cities, turnout reached 60.7 percent in Modiin, 60.3 per cent in Rosh Haayin and 60.6 per cent in the Bedouin city of Rahat.
Nationwide turnout stood at 55.7 per cent at 4pm.
Ra’am leader Mansour Abbas has accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of spreading false claims about election fraud to encourage right-wing supporters to vote.
“Benjamin Netanyahu is lying and inciting against Ra’am, using it as a scare tactic to mobilize right-wing voters and drive them to the polls,” Abbas said in a video message.
His comments follow Netanyahu’s claims that Arab voters were “trying to steal the election” as turnout continues to rise across Israel.
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