News: The end of the Netanyahu era or Israel is on the verge of political turmoil again

For the second time in five months, Israelis have woken up to the dawn of a new but very familiar day: the country's two main political parties are once again at an impasse.
Partial results show that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party will be ousted by the blue-and-white party of main challenger Benny Gantz. Gantz's center-left party is expected to take 32 seats, while Netanyahu will take 31 out of 120 seats in parliament.

"Stripped to the bone"

With 91% of the votes counted as of Wednesday afternoon, Netanyahu's bloc is six seats short of the majority.
Avigdor Lieberman, whose secular right-wing Yisrael Beiteinu party is projected to win nine seats, may once again become the number one candidate, gaining the power to send the country to the next round of elections.

"The picture is clear. There is only one option, and that is a government of broad liberal unity," he said, referring to a potential coalition consisting of his Yisrael Beiteinu, Likud, and Blue and White.

But this alliance means that Gantz will have to break the promise he made to his supporters: never to sit in the same coalition as Netanyahu.

"I'm very disappointed," said Aaron Janish, a fashion designer from the northern port city of Haifa who voted for Blue and White. "Am I surprised? Unlikely. These elections are an accurate reflection of society in Israel. We are divided to the bone."

To understand the tragedy of division in a small Middle Eastern country, one needs to look no further than the other parties joining the Israeli parliament or the Knesset.
The right-wing Likud and the center-left Blue and White are followed by the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, followed by the Joint List, an alliance of four Arab parties, and religious Judaism represented by the United Torah.

"The real problem is that nothing will change," says 33-year-old Shaked, the mother of a newborn baby girl.
"This is my real concern. People are apathetic because they know it doesn't matter. Will someone end the occupation? Will anyone freeze the construction of new settlements? Will anyone make life here easier than before? I doubt it very much."

In Israel, it is customary to say that you can sleep with one winner and wake up with another. This uncertainty is suspicious even for those who are satisfied with the results.
"In any case, all sides are corrupt," said Yoram Naumann, an Israeli lawyer.
"But I am pleased with the results, because at least they mean that in one form or another, Gantz and his party will have to become part of the government. This is a small step in the right direction."

However, Netanyahu's supporters support their candidate.
"I seriously consider Netanyahu to be the best prime minister Israel can have," Assaf Shitrit, 34, said. "Leftists always think that the people who vote for him are uneducated or ignorant - but that's ridiculous."

If there are no significant changes when the final results are published, there will be many losers in these elections. One of them may be Netanyahu, who desperately sought an absolute majority in the hope of passing a law that would grant him immunity from potential criminal prosecution on corruption charges.

But every day, Israelis seem to be bearing the brunt of the election.
"I'm just tired," says Janish. "We can't go to the polls every few months because our politicians are too corrupt to behave like representatives of a proper democracy." Try Cocoa casino and enjoy the action.