Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and main rival Benny Gantz, both claimed victory in Israel's election on Tuesday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu waves to supporters at his Likud Party headquarters in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv on election night early on April 10, 2019.
Though neither party captured a ruling majority in the Knesset, according to the exit polls, two of the three surveys put Netanyahu in a stronger position to form a coalition government with the help of right-wing factions. Channel 13 forecast Netanyahu could piece together a ruling bloc controlling 66 seats compared with 54 for a Blue and White-led coalition of centre-left and left-wing parties.
Addressing a Blue and White rally in Tel Aviv, Gantz said exit polls showed the party had won the most seats and it should, therefore, be given the chance, by Israel's president, to form the next government."We are the victors," Gantz said."We want to thank Benjamin Netanyahu for his service to the nation."
Once the votes are tallied, President Reuven Rivlin will ask parties that have won parliamentary seats who they support for prime minister. He will then pick a party leader to try to form a coalition, giving the candidate 28 days to do so, with a two-week extension if needed.
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