Jerusalem [Israel], October 28 : As election day reaches its final hours, Israeli television stations are set to air a series of exit polls as voting concludes at 10 pm, providing an early estimate of the results, The Times of Israel reported.
The exit polls are likely to be updated throughout the night as more data comes in.
Meanwhile, the Central Elections Committee will immediately start counting the actual votes and provide official tallies throughout the night and the following day, with actual results often differing from exit poll projections, the publication added.
Israel’s electorate headed to the polls in large numbers, pushing national voter participation to 74.3 per cent by 8 pm, according to official data released by the Central Elections Committee.
The robust figure reflects a notable increase in civic engagement compared to the previous electoral cycle, when overall turnout for the 2022 polls stood at 70.63 per cent.
Building on that momentum, national turnout had earlier surged to 66.7 per cent by 6 pm, marking a nine-percentage-point leap compared to the 57.7 per cent recorded at the same hour during the 2022 general election and establishing the highest voter participation ever recorded at that hour in the nation's history, according to The Times of Israel.
As the high-stakes election drew towards its closing hours, millions of citizens visited polling stations throughout the day, creating long queues that pushed midday turnout to 31.5 per cent by 12 pm and climbed to 55.7 per cent by 4 pm, significantly surpassing previous electoral benchmarks.
With the late-day figures underscoring an unprecedented mobilisation, political leaders across the spectrum launched final appeals to sway remaining voters.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued an urgent video address urging Likud supporters to head immediately to the polls, warning that surging turnout among Arab parties and political rivals threatened to bring a "leftist government" to power.
Characterising the vote as a critical turning point, Netanyahu called on his supporters to rally family and neighbours while cautioning conservative voters against supporting right-wing alternatives or splinter parties.
"Only this way do we win, and it is possible to win, but you must go out!" he said, urging voters to cast their ballots for Likud using its ballot letters (Mahal).
In sharp contrast, Netanyahu's principal challenger and Yashar Party chairman Gadi Eisenkot accused the incumbent of resorting to "tricks, lies and intimidation" to mobilise the electorate.
In a social media post, Eisenkot warned that the Prime Minister's campaign tactics put the prospects of a change in government at risk, while calling on supporters to remain active until polling closed at 10 pm.
Today's general election, the first to be held since the Hamas-led massacre of October 7, 2023, unfolds amid deep national divisions over security accountability, state leadership and the independence of Israel’s democratic institutions.
Prime Minister Netanyahu, who has remained at the centre of power for 19 years, faces a formidable challenge from former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot and his Yashar Party, which led in various opinion surveys ahead of the vote.