Exit polls show no clear winner in Israel’s parliamentary election

Initial exit polls showed no clear winner in Israel’s parliamentary election on Tuesday, as vote counting began after polling stations closed, Anadolu Agency reported.

A Channel 13 exit poll projected 50 seats for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc, 53 for Gadi Eisenkot’s bloc and 17 for Arab parties in the 120-seat Knesset.

Polling stations closed at 10 p.m. local time (2000 GMT). The projections are not official election results.

The Central Elections Committee reported turnout of 74.3% as of 8 p.m. local time (1800 GMT).

By that time, 5,449,277 people had cast ballots out of 7,331,981 eligible voters, according to the committee.