JERUSALEM, April 9 -- Exit polls of the Israeli elections on Tuesday show a race too close to call, where leaders of both rival parties have declared victory.
Incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, leader of the Likud Party, announced "a clear-cut victory" on his Facebook page, while the former military chief Benny Gantz, leader of the Blue and White party, tweeted "We have won!"
The three leading exit polls showed different breakdowns for possible coalitions after the elections, but one common denominator was the advantage of Netanyahu in leading the right-wing bloc which had more seats than the rival center-left bloc.
Initial official results are expected in the early hours of Wednesday morning, where several more parties, allied with either side, may have the chance to cross the 3.25-percent threshold to change the political landscape.
"The picture right now is completely unclear. There are possible scenarios in which neither of the big parties are able to form a coalition," said Julia Elad-Strenger of the Department of Political Sciences at Bar Ilan University.
"The center-left bloc will have a very difficult time in creating a coalition. But the right bloc will also have difficulty," said Oded Eran, a senior researcher at the Israeli Institute for National Security Studies.
While the Likud has won 33 to 36 seats, there are several small right-wing parties that Netanyahu will need in order to form a coalition. This might increase the pressure on him to pay a high political price for leading the next government.
"It may seem theoretic at this point, but the Likud and Blue and White may even form a coalition together," Eran, also a former senior Israeli diplomat, told Xinhua.
Another element that may also tip the balance is Israeli soldiers who are expected to vote in the early hours of Wednesday.
"Soldiers tend to be more right-wing," Elad-Strenger explained. "They can move parties above the threshold and change the whole picture completely."
Notably, the final results are expected on Thursday at the earliest, as the neck-to-neck race makes every single vote count.
In addition, the ongoing elections are widely perceived in Israel as a referendum on the decade-long consecutive ruling of Netanyahu, who is fighting to avoid being indicted in at least three separate cases of bribery, fraud and breach of trust.
Israel's attorney general is expected to hold a hearing for Netanyahu in the summer, after which he will decide whether Netanyahu will be indicted. Should the indictment decision be made, there will be likely mounting pressure on Netanyahu to resign, which will lead Israel to another general elections in no more than a year.
But "the corruption allegations proved to be not such a major consideration among voters," Eran noted.
Should Netanyahu succeed in leading the next government, he will become the longest-serving Israeli prime minister this summer. However, the road to his fifth term in office will not be easy.
"The coalition negotiations will take a very long time. The small parties are going to be tough negotiators," Eran noted.
In one ear and out the other 左耳进,右耳出
US-Cuba flights and male cosmetic surgery 美国-古巴复航和男性整容手术
Antibiotics and escalator etiquette 美国人过多使用抗生素,伦敦地铁扶梯礼仪
Battery risk, Farmer anti-theft solution 纽扣电池的潜在危险,牧场主防盗有术
The cost of protecting the environment, Juno space probe 保护环境付出的代价,“朱诺”木星探测器
Diabetes warning and Queen at 90 糖尿病激增引忧, 英国女王90岁生日
Solar superpower, female commander and hospital demolished 太阳能超级大国,女海军司令官和著名医院化为废墟
Creativity、innovation 和 originality 的区别
Drought in Ethiopia and MS treatment 埃塞俄比亚干旱,多发性硬化治疗手段新进展
Zika virus and the A4 waist challenge 寨卡病毒,“A4腰挑战”
Distinct 和 distinctive 之间的区别
Counting elephants, Australian Elvis 空中数大象,澳大利亚“猫王节”
Zika threat and back from space 寨卡病毒威胁美国,国际空间站宇航员返回地球
Appreciate 和 recognise 之间的区别
Dangerous heartbeat, Spike Lee and the Oscars 危险的心跳,斯派克·李抵制奥斯卡
Ten a penny 多得遍地都是
All things to all people 八面玲珑
Chinwag 闲谈-英语点津
Mars bars and baby gorilla 火星巧克力棒和大猩猩产幼子
Restrain 和 constrain 的区别
Zika virus, Rare whale filmed in Australia 寨卡病毒传播风险,澳大利亚拍到罕见鲸鱼影像
Chelsea doctor and surfing in Australia 切尔西队医与球队和解,澳大利亚冲浪
Russian athletes and friendly robots 俄罗斯运动员服用兴奋剂,“合作机器人”
Angelina Jolie to divorce, Karaoke star at 80 安吉丽娜·朱莉提出离婚申请,八十岁老人出唱片
EU after Brexit, human ancestor mystery 英脱欧公投后的欧盟,人类祖先之谜新发现
Ditch 和 abandon 之间的区别
Commend 和 recommend 的区别
Darkness over Indonesia and the 'fifth Beatle' dies 印度尼西亚日全食,“第五位披头士”去世
Distinguished 和 distinguishable 之间的区别
Take part in, join in, participate, attend 四个表示“参加”的单词或短语