The first exit polls from the main general elections in Israel on Tuesday showed historic gains for the Arab parties in the country, whose supporters came in large numbers.
Exit polls by Israel's main television channels predicted that the two Arab political lists would win a combined 17-18 seats in the 120-member parliament, compared to 10 in the 2022 elections.
The headquarters of the Joint List, an alliance of several Arab parties, erupted with whistles and applause when the results were announced, while supporters of the Ra'am party were photographed celebrating.
According to exit polls published by Channel 12, Ra'am and the Joint List are expected to win seven and 11 mandates, respectively, the "Jerusalem Post" reported. Initial results indicated that Israeli voters have delivered a scathing rebuke to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with exit polls suggesting his opponents could secure a narrow majority in the next parliament.