74,000 Gaza Deaths Mark Election Where Candidates Agree on War but Split on Courts

Israeli voters cast their ballots on Tuesday in an election defined by a narrow set of domestic disputes. The major candidates largely agree on the conduct of the war in Gaza and the broader regional strategy. The primary conflict centers on the power of the judiciary and the conscription of ultra-Orthodox men.

More than 74,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the Hamas-led attack of October 7, 2023. This toll is absent from the policy platforms of the two main alliances. The frontrunners have not offered a clear route to a two-state solution or a fair settlement for Palestinians living under occupation.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leads the hard-right government. His coalition seeks to rule without the judicial oversight he has criticized. A loose coalition of opponents opposes his government. This group promises a similar policy agenda but intends to operate within the law and without the extreme elements of the current administration.

The question of a Palestinian state remains contested. Israel committed to the goal in the Oslo Accords of the 1990s. Few contenders appear ready to honor that pledge. Netanyahu promised there will be no Palestinian state. Gadi Eisenkot of the Yashar party called the principle a mistake. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich urged the next government to cancel the Oslo Accords and encourage migration from Gaza and the West Bank.

Yair Golan, leader of the Democrats party, stated that a leap to two states is impossible while Israeli society remains in trauma. He pointed instead to civil separation and security responsibility. The government has also backed the E1 settlement plan. Ministers openly say this project will bury the two-state idea.

Conscription for the ultra-Orthodox population is a unique domestic issue. Its prominence has grown as the costs of the wars have mounted. Netanyahu depends on Shas and United Torah Judaism for support in the Knesset. These parties demand legislation overturning a Supreme Court ruling from June 25, 2024. That ruling shields ultra-Orthodox youth from the draft.

About 40 ultra-Orthodox men were arrested this month for avoiding conscription. Netanyahu described the arrests as a deliberate attempt to harm the process of drafting without coercion. Shas leader Aryeh Deri said his party would not join any government unless the status of yeshiva students is regulated. Eisenkot framed the vote as a choice between a draft-dodging government and one led by him that enforces conscription. Avigdor Liberman of Yisrael Beiteinu called Netanyahu a hostage to the draft evaders.

The judicial overhaul is a major flashpoint. The government unveiled a plan to curb the courts days after taking office in 2022. Mass protests followed in 2023 before the war on Gaza interrupted them. The coalition passed measures changing how judges are appointed. A law passed in July stripped Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara of many powers. It allows the government to reject her legal advice and choose its own lawyers in court.

Both measures are due to take effect after the election. Most of the opposition has vowed to reverse them. The government has boycotted Chief Justice Isaac Amit. Critics call this an assault on democracy by a prime minister facing a corruption trial. Justice Minister Yariv Levin called the election a historic chance to finish the job. Netanyahu argued that Israel needs we the people, not we the judges.

Naftali Bennett, co-leader of the Together alliance and a former prime minister, pledged to cancel all legal revolution laws as soon as the Knesset convenes. Accountability for October 7 has dominated the campaign. Inquiries into security failures led Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi to resign in January 2025. Shin Bet head Ronen Bar left in June 2025 after a dispute with the prime minister. No comparable inquiry has examined Netanyahu's role, despite reports that the UAE and Egypt warned him before the attack. Eisenkot said Netanyahu was warned and did not act. Netanyahu told the Knesset his government wants an inquiry with as broad public support as possible. The proposed government-led inquiry has been deferred to the next session.