Israel's Central Election Commission: All participation records were broken Israel's Central Election Commission announced that in the first seven hours of voting, 44.9% of those with the right to vote voted. The commission said the voter turnout "broke all records". There are now about five hours left until the end of voting. More than 3.7 million people are allowed to vote to elect the 120 members of the Knesset, Israel's parliament. Election analysts are still cautious about the impact of the unprecedented turnout on the election results. Increasing the participation of Israeli citizens of Palestinian origin may prevent Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing coalition from gaining more seats. At the same time, this issue increases the possibility that any government formed to oust him will need the support of Arab parties. More than five hours after the start of voting, Benjamin Netanyahu sent a message to his supporters asking them to go to the polls. According to him, the level of participation of his opponents on the left, as well as Israeli Arab citizens, who make up about a fifth of the country's population, is high:
"Our participation must also be high. You should all flock to the polls. This is a decisive moment."