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Israeli political leaders react to election results

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Labour Party leader Avi Gabbay called the election results “a huge disappointment” as his party is expected to win 6 seats, the worst performance in its history.

Former Labour leader Shelly Yachimovich said: “This is a heavy and painful result, the worst result ever for the Labour party. The Zionist left has suffered a harsh blow and it demands a thorough review after tonight … we have a long road ahead of us”

The New Right, led by Naftali Bennett and Ayelet Shaked, is currently not expected to win the required 3.25 per cent of votes (as of this morning they are at 3.14 per cent) and need 4,000 more votes from the 3 per cent of total votes left to be counted today. Bennett said last night: “Don’t be discouraged. Leadership is tested in tough moments, not when it’s easy. We have patience, great faith and nerves of steel. The New Right party will pass [the threshold] and pass nicely, patience.”

The United Right, which are likely to win 5 seats, said the decision for the factions (Jewish Home, National Union and Jewish Power) to join forces “saved right-wing rule”. The party added: “In the coming hours we will enter immediate negations in order to finalise the principles by which this government will act even before we make our recommendation to the president.”

Rafi Peretz, number 1 on the party’s list, tweeted: “Not only did we achieve our mission and save the home, we also saved the entire national camp.” Bezalel Smotrich, second on the party’s list, said he would legislate a way for Jewish Power extremist Itamar Ben Gvir, number 7 on the list, to enter the Knesset, despite the party only getting 5 seats.

Moshe Feiglin, whose right-wing libertarian party Zehut failed to win any seats, despite polls that predicted they would win 6 seats, said: “What is happening now is the end of the beginning, not the beginning of the end. What happened during this campaign is that a new awareness was born, an awareness of liberty. The true victory is the awareness that we sparked in this entire younger generation.” He blamed his party’s performance on a concentrated campaign against Zehut from the entire political spectrum.

Moshe Kahlon said at his Kulanu party’s event that he had spoken with Netanyahu and agreed to: “Meet him after the real results are in and not one minute before”. He subsequently said, while walking to his car: “I am a member of the national camp, I will recommend Benjamin Netanyahu.”