Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is on the cusp of another term as Israel’s prime minister.
Despite early exit polls showing that Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party and Benny Gantz’s centrist Blue and White coalition were neck-and-neck and it might be a while before a clear winner emerged, Netanyahu was pulling ahead to another term as prime minister, according to reports. Hours after polls closed, all three of Israel’s major TV networks were reporting Netanyahu would remain as prime minister.
It will be Netanyahu’s fifth term as the Middle Eastern country’s prime minister and his fourth consecutive term.
“It’s a night of tremendous victory,” Netanyahu said at his victory rally. “I was very moved that the nation of Israel once again entrusted me for the fifth time, and with an even greater trust.”
The 69-year-old is winning despite facing possible charges of bribery and breach of trust from the Israeli attorney general.
Before and during the election, Netanyahu embraced President Trump and has used that leverage to shore up support for his bid, touting the U.S. decision to move its embassy to Jerusalem and the recent announcement of U.S. support for Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
Though Netanyahu’s government would lean strongly right, he said after the polls closed that he hoped to retain unity across the nation.
“I want to make it clear, it will be a right-wing government, but I intend to be the prime minister of all Israeli citizens — right or left, Jews and non-Jews alike,” Netanyahu said.
