Palestinian parties’ Knesset gains force Gadi Eisenkot to choose: cooperate or cede power to Netanyahu

Exit polls from Israel’s general election show a surge for Palestinian parties that could redraw the political map. Opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot, who leads the anti-Netanyahu bloc, called the results a win for the “Zionist national majority,” but the numbers tell a different story. With Palestinian factions poised to hold a decisive bloc of seats, Eisenkot faces a stark choice: build a coalition with Arab-Israeli leaders or watch Benjamin Netanyahu cling to power. The rise of these parties challenges the long-standing exclusion of Arab citizens from governing coalitions. For the first time in years, their votes may determine whether Israel’s next government leans right or center. Netanyahu, a master of coalition politics, could exploit any refusal to cooperate, framing himself as the only stable option for a Jewish-majority government. The coming weeks will test whether Israel’s opposition can move beyond rhetoric and forge an unprecedented alliance. If not, Netanyahu’s political survival may be secured by the very divisions he has long cultivated.