Israel’s Central Elections Committee released the final results of Tuesday’s elections at midnight on Friday, following a day of delays, malfunctions, and recriminations.
The returns were slow in coming due to computer issues, which were initially falsely rumored to be the result of a cyber attack.
The final results were not markedly different from those previously reported, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party rising one mandate to 36 seats and the Haredi party United Torah Judaism falling one seat to seven in total, according to the Israeli news site Mako.
While there had been much speculation that the New Right party led by Education Minister Naftali Bennett and Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked might succeed in entering the Knesset, the party nonetheless fell short of crossing the threshold by less than 1,500 votes.
Center-left challenger Benny Gantz’s Blue and White party was confirmed to receive 35 seats, while the Haredi party Shas won eight and the center-left Labor party and Arab party Hadash-Taal received six seats apiece. The Union of Right-Wing Parties and center-right Yisrael Beiteinu both won five seats, while left-wing Meretz, centrist Kulanu, and Arab party Raam-Balad all received four seats respectively.
In total, the center-right political bloc gained 65 seats, while the center-left received 55.
The Algemeiner   (c) 2019 .         Benjamin Kerstein
{Matzav.com}