Israeli parties submit slates for October Knesset elections

Israeli political parties submitted their candidate slates to the Central Elections Committee ahead of the Tuesday deadline for the Knesset vote scheduled for October 27. Media reports counted 38 lists delivered before the cutoff, with the committee set to complete its review and finalize the approved lists on September 27.

Among the final filings were the governing Likud party and the Religious Zionist Party led by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. The Joint List, an alliance of Arab-majority parties, also filed its roster on Tuesday. Likud’s submitted list contains 35 candidates, headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and followed by Energy Minister Eli Cohen, Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, and Justice Minister Yariv Levin.

Polling and analysis released as the filings closed indicate a fragmented electoral map. Turkiye’s Andalou Agency reported that the opposition party Yashar is polling ahead of Likud, and broader surveys suggest that no single party is expected to win an outright majority. That means smaller parties and post-election coalition choices will likely determine who can form a government.

Public concern about the health of Israel’s democratic process is also prominent in the backdrop to this campaign. A poll by the Israel Democracy Institute found that 70 percent of Jewish Israelis expressed worry about the integrity of the 2026 election, underscoring the broader anxieties that could influence turnout and political bargaining after the October vote.