Arab Parties Court Votes as Israel Election Leaves Netanyahu's Hold in Doubt

Israel's Arab political parties are positioning to influence the formation of the next government, as polls show neither Likud nor the opposition securing a parliamentary majority ahead of Tuesday's election. Coverage across Arab media outlets has centered on whether the Joint List and Ra'am can deliver seats that determine who becomes prime minister, and on the political future of Benjamin Netanyahu. The Joint List is an alliance of Hadash, Ta'al, and Balad. Ra'am is led by Mansour Abbas.

Reporting has also touched on what a change of government would mean for Palestinian statehood and the two-state solution. Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said at a press conference Monday that the outcome of Tuesday's election "makes no difference to us." "I do not agree with elections in the occupied territories at all; there is competition between different gangs to commit more evil," Baghaei said. Iranian state-affiliated media, including the Tasnim News Agency, has reported on multiple polls examining Likud's chances of winning the election.

Egypt's Alghad TV carried remarks Sunday from Hadash politician Shadi Shweiri on the Arab vote. The report referred to Arab citizens of Israel as "Palestinians in the country" and said Arab parties should not support just any candidate seeking to replace Netanyahu, but one willing to halt Israel's military operations in the region and improve economic opportunities for Arab citizens. Shweiri accused the current government of racism and of committing crimes against Palestinians in Gaza.

Shweiri said Arab citizens' right to vote should not be viewed as evidence of goodwill on Israel's part, but as a right secured through international pressure. "Our situation is that we are being asked to choose between the bad and the worse, rather than between the good and the better," Shweiri said. He added that the right to vote was a fundamental condition for Israel's acceptance as a member of the United Nations in 1948 and as part of the international community.

The London-based Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, owned by Qatar's Fadaat Media, reported Monday on fears of a political stalemate that could leave Netanyahu leading a caretaker government. In an analysis by Qatar-based Palestinian journalist Beirut Hammoud, the outlet framed the election as taking place after three years of what it described as "genocide" and "ethnic cleansing" across the Palestinian territories, including east Jerusalem. Hammoud argued that even opposition politicians differed little from the prime minister. "They differ from him only in their methods of managing the conflict," she claimed.

Al-Khanadeq, a Lebanon-based outlet described in the source as pro-Hezbollah, published an analysis Monday alleging Netanyahu had portrayed the Arab vote as a liability. The article pointed to AI-generated campaign material associated with Netanyahu's camp depicting political figures, including Gadi Eisenkot, alongside Ra'am leader Mansour Abbas. The analysis also cited efforts by the Central Elections Committee to disqualify Arab-majority parties and the deployment of 2,000 activists, which the author characterized as attempts to deter Arab citizens from voting.

The Palestinian news site Al Quds, based in east Jerusalem, examined the timing of Israel's election around the United States' midterms. The article was written by Dr. Ahmed Youseff, a former senior adviser to assassinated Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. He wrote that a Gadi Eisenkot victory could reopen the door for Israel's international diplomacy efforts and for accountability for Israel's security failures. "The American vote should also curb Trump's drive toward confrontation and empower Congress to hold the administration accountable and push for a political path that spares the region a wider war," Youseff wrote.

Al Quds reported on the timing of Israel's election relative to the United States' midterms. The article was written by Dr. Ahmed Youseff, a former senior adviser to assassinated Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. He wrote that the hopes are that Netanyahu and his allies will lose and that Israeli society will have an opportunity to reassess its policies of war and extremism. The election takes place Tuesday.