Netanyahu Claims Opponents are Trying to Steal Israel's Election

Benjamin Netanyahu has warned Likud supporters that Israel's election is at risk of being stolen, using an election-day video to amplify allegations of vote buying and urge his party's voters to turn out in force.

In a roughly 63-second message released on October 27, the Israeli prime minister declared: "Brothers and sisters, Likud voters, this is an emergency call because they are trying to steal the election from us."

The intervention came as polling continued and competing political blocs sought the numbers needed to secure a parliamentary majority. Likud was also reportedly preparing to challenge results from Arab-majority polling stations if Netanyahu's bloc lost.

Netanyahu Cites Police Investigation

Netanyahu's warning referred to a police announcement that three people linked to Ra'am, the Arab party led by Mansour Abbas, had been detained in southern Israel on suspicion of election bribery.

Police said the suspects were allegedly paying people to vote for Ra'am. Searches reportedly uncovered cash, prepared envelopes and Ra'am ballot slips, while the case was transferred to Lahav 433, the police unit handling major investigations.

The Central Elections Committee said the three were apprehended in a vehicle, rather than at or near polling stations. Ra'am rejected the allegations as baseless and accused authorities of seeking to suppress Arab voter participation, while also alleging that National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's influence over the police was a factor.

Netanyahu used the investigation to warn his supporters that those responsible would be pursued. He also claimed that turnout in the Arab sector in the south was exceeding participation among Jewish voters.

"No one stays home. No sea, no barbecue," he said, urging supporters to bring relatives and neighbors to the polls.

Transport Minister Miri Regev echoed the message while voting, saying: "They're trying to steal the election from us and the country... It's either the right or Palestine."

Likud Prepares To Contest Results

The prime minister's remarks came amid reports that Likud had already begun preparing to challenge election results in Arab-majority areas should Netanyahu lose.

According to reports by Channel 12, Haaretz and The Times of Israel, the party was organizing about 2,000 paid activists to film voters outside polling stations and relay information to a dedicated election-fraud operation.

The reported preparations included potential complaints involving women wearing face veils and polling arrangements that allow separate voting hours for Bedouin communities. Election monitors, however, do not have authority to check voters' identification outside polling stations.

Civil-rights groups have warned that the monitoring effort could intimidate voters. The Central Elections Committee's rules require appropriate identification, including the removal of face coverings where necessary, while separate voting hours are permitted if the station remains open to all eligible voters.

The reported strategy has drawn comparisons with Donald Trump's efforts to challenge the outcome of the 2020 U.S. presidential election. Netanyahu was reportedly not present at the meetings discussing the preparations but was considering the option of challenging results.

The allegations also recall Netanyahu's 2015 election-day warning that "Arabs are streaming to the polls in droves," a message that mobilized right-wing voters by portraying Arab turnout as a threat to his electoral prospects.

A Tight Race With No Clear Majority

The election is unfolding amid projections that leave both major political camps short of the 61 seats required for a parliamentary majority.

Final pre-election polls placed Gadi Eisenkot's Yashar party at about 22–23 seats, compared with 19–21 for Likud. Netanyahu's bloc was projected to win approximately 50–51 seats, while the Jewish opposition parties led by Eisenkot, Naftali Bennett, Avigdor Liberman and Yair Golan were estimated to hold between 52 and 56.

Ra'am and the Joint List were projected to secure a combined 14–16 seats. The electoral threshold is 3.25%, making the performance of smaller parties another factor in determining which side can assemble a government.

Eisenkot has ruled out joining a Netanyahu-led government, including through a rotation arrangement, narrowing the prime minister's potential coalition options.

Netanyahu framed the contest as a choice between a strong right-wing government led by Likud and a left-wing government backed by Arab parties. He described the stakes as "preserving our Jewish state" and warned that his opponents would "bring an end to the State of Israel as we know it."

He closed his video by urging supporters to vote Likud, identified on the ballot by the letter combination Mahal, and to do so in large numbers.

Results Remain Pending

Polling stations remained open on Tuesday afternoon, with no final result available. Official results were expected around November 4, after which President Isaac Herzog would assign the mandate to form a government.

Netanyahu's election-day intervention placed allegations of electoral misconduct at the center of the campaign's closing hours. Whether the police investigation or any subsequent challenges affect the outcome remained unresolved as voters continued to cast ballots.