Israelis began voting on Tuesday in an election that could retain Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a record fifth term or see a former military general, who has posed a strong challenge to the incumbent veteran, take charge.
Polling began at 7 am and will wind up by 10 pm local time. The final results are expected on Wednesday, but a clear victor may not emerge, paving way for a coalition government.
Netanyahu's campaign has been dubbed populist to the rightist camps and continues to be hardened against the Palestinians. The Likud party leader, who was indicted in a corruption case, also said that if he won, he planned to annex settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Ex-military general Benny Gantz is new to politics, but has been played up to be a strong contender. He has called Netanyahu's annexation pledge as an irresponsible attempt to win right-wing votes. Moreover, Gantz has also raked up corruption charges against the veteran leader to make his case in the elections.
Gantz, 59, has displayed his military credentials to show the people that he intends to undo the damage that Netanyahu has spread across the country with his divisive politics.
Netanyahu, who has been premier for a total of more than 13 years, has called for the annexation of the West Bank, which could wipe out the possibility of a two-state solution with the Palestinians, in an effort to rally the support of the far-right.
Gantz, meanwhile, has said that he prefers a “globally backed peace agreement” that sees Israel hold on to the large settlement blocs in the West Bank and maintain security control over the territory.
During the campaign, Netanyahu cited US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and of Israel's claim of sovereignty over the Golan Heights in his campaign. On the corruption charges, Netanyahu called the corruption allegations a “witch hunt”, eerily mirroring Trump's stance during the Russian probe.
(With inputs from agencies)
