Israel Election Leaves Netanyahu and Eisenkot Blocs Short of Majority
Early reporting puts the blocs of Netanyahu and Eisenkot short of a majority, with Arab parties potentially holding the key to the next government.
JERUSALEM - BBC News reported that the two main blocs in Israel's election appear to have too few seats to form the next government without relying on Arab parties. Its report carried the headline "Arab parties could hold key as Netanyahu and Eisenkot set to fall short of victory."
The Guardian, in a report by Julian Borger in Jerusalem, said projections showed the blocs of Netanyahu and Eisenkot tied, and that both were set to fall short of a majority. The Guardian report said the projections showed votes for Palestinian parties had surged in a tight contest that drew the highest turnout in decades.
According to The Guardian, Israel's future hung in the balance on Wednesday morning. Its report also referred to coalition talks looming, and described Benjamin Netanyahu as having lost his governing position, though the summary available for this account does not give the full sentence.
The two outlets describe the same bloc in different terms. BBC News refers to Arab parties, while The Guardian refers to Palestinian parties. Neither summary reconciles the two terms. Both also describe the outcome in terms of projections or appearances rather than final results, with BBC News saying the blocs appear to have too few seats and The Guardian citing exit polls.
Neither source provides seat totals or a final count in the material available for this report, so the shape of any eventual coalition remains unclear in the reporting cited.
Sources: BBC News: Arab parties could hold key as Netanyahu and Eisenkot set to fall short of victory; The Guardian: Coalition talks loom in Israel as Netanyahu and Eisenkot blocs set to fall short of majority.