Tel Aviv - Israelis headed to polling stations on Tuesday to
vote in the country's general election, in what is being seen as the
toughest challenge in years for current Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu.
The emergence of popular former army chief Benny Gantz on the
political scene, coupled with a string of corruption scandals
resulted in a difficult election campaign for Netanyahu.
"With God's help the state of Israel will win," Netanyahu said as he
cast his vote together with his wife Sara in Jerusalem in the
morning.
"There are many people who want us to continue this fantastic journey
which brought Israel to its best decade in history, and we have so
much more to do," Netanyahu said afterwards, as he urged Israelis to
vote for his right-wing Likud party.
His main rival Gantz, leader of the new centrist Blue and White
party, cast his vote in his hometown Rosh Haayin and said: "This is a
day of hope. A day of unity. I am looking the people of Israel in the
eyes and telling them - this change is possible."
"I offer myself as Israel's prime minister and together, we will take
this new path. I call out to all of you - let's respect democracy and
go vote," Gantz added.
Both leaders continued their vigorous campaigns throughout the day as
their parties battled to garner the largest number of seats in the
next parliament.
Netanyahu warned that he would lose if right-wing voters didn't come
out in force for Likud. Gantz stated that anything other than a Blue
and White vote amounted to a vote for Likud.
From Ramallah, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he hoped
Israeli voters would "follow the right path to reach peace."
"They (Israel) should understand that peace is in our interest as
well [as] theirs and [those of the] whole world," Abbas said in a
statement published by Palestinian news agency WAFA.
For the past decade that Netanyahu has served as prime minister, the
peace process has remained stalled. Days before the election, in an
apparent bid to win over right-wing voters, he vowed to annex Jewish
settlements in the West Bank.
Gantz has spoken in favour of a peace agreement while maintaining
Jerusalem as Israel's capital and retaining the settlement blocs.
The tight race between Likud and the Blue and White party
materialized after Gantz teamed up with lawmaker Yair Lapid to form
the new centrist party, which has had a slight edge in most polls
over Netanyahu's Likud.
However, polls have shown that most Israelis believe Netanyahu will
be the one to form the next coalition.
This is partly because the right-wing bloc of parties is expected to
be larger in the Knesset than the centre-left bloc, which could hand
Netanyahu the mandate to retain the premiership.
Of a handful of voters who spoke to dpa at a polling station in the
liberal city of Tel Aviv, the majority said they were voting Blue and
White. "Only Blue and White!" one woman shouted on her way to vote.
Adi Grinberg said she was hoping for a revolution and, referring to
Netanyahu by his nickname, said: "Bibi has to go."
"If I know something isn't good then we need to see something
different. Maybe the something else will be worse - I don't know -
but we have to at least give a chance for change, improvement and a
better life," Grinberg told dpa.
"I just want to try to bring Bibi down," said Danielle, who declined
to give her surname, but neither Danielle nor Grinberg had high
expectations of that happening.
"I think Bibi will win again and the country ... will only continue
to deteriorate," Grinberg predicted.
Yaarit, who withheld her surname, said she was resigned to a
Netanyahu victory and had thus opted for Kulanu, a smaller
centre-right party. The party focuses on socio-economic issues with a
platform which seeks to reduce the cost of living and reduce social
gaps.
"Nothing will change," Yaarit said.
Some 6.3 million people are eligible to vote, with a choice of some
40 parties.
Voter turnout by 6pm (1500 GMT) was 52%. The polls were set
to close at 10 PM.