Israeli voters will choose a new Knesset on Oct. 27 in an election centered on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack, the wars that followed and his record in office. Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is also competing on a joint ticket with opposition leader Yair Lapid.
The campaign has exposed a sharper divide over settler violence in the West Bank than over Palestinian statehood. He has said the Shin Bet security agency was brought in to address the violence. Yair Golan has also pledged to restore order.
On Gaza, the leading candidates remain committed to preventing Hamas from retaining military or governing power. President Donald Trump, while Hamas still has armed fighters and controls the remaining area, where most Palestinians live. Netanyahu says Israel will not withdraw or rebuild Gaza until Hamas is disarmed. Eisenkot has said Hamas would no longer rule Gaza within 18 months of his taking office, while Bennett has vowed to hold Israel’s current line until disarmament and then pursue a reconstruction plan relying on Egypt rather than Qatar or Turkey.
The election will therefore change Israel’s coalition and governing style, but the principal contenders largely share a hard-line security outlook and oppose near-term Palestinian statehood.