'We are very strong': Israeli voters voice confidence, bat for peace

Jerusalem, October 27 (IANS): As they voted to elect the 26th Knesset, the country’s Parliament, Israelis on Tuesday expressed hope for peace, batted for country’s democratic system and voiced confidence in its future. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara Netanyahu also voted at a Jerusalem polling station and urged everyone to “Go out and vote!”Around 7.3 million eligible voters are registered across the country, with approximately 12,000 polling stations set up for the election.Speaking to IANS, a local resident said, “We absolutely do not like war and want peace in Israel as well as across the world. I have also visited Belgium, but I did not find it particularly appealing, and Israel is a very good country of its own. There is democracy in Israel, not dictatorship..."Meanwhile, another young woman, who was returning after casting her vote, expressed confidence in Israel’s strength and said she hoped the newly elected representatives would work towards a better future.“Israel is a very good country, and we are very strong. We do not need anyone’s help. I voted for the team I like..... And other really great people and women and men in the team that I really want should come and be in the Knesset and, and make the future better..” she told IANS.Another local resident urged citizens to exercise their democratic right, saying, “Everybody should go out and vote. Everybody who's over 18 years old should come and say what they need to say and put their specific paper that they want in votes, and should go out and vote. More people should vote; everybody should vote.”Underscoring the significance of the election, another resident described it as a defining moment in the country’s history.“I say this election is the most important in the history of the State of Israel,” the resident told IANS.Meanwhile, Israel’s Central Election Commission Director General Dean Livne outlined the scale of the electoral arrangements, saying, "We'll have 7.3 million eligible voters in 12,018 voting booths—regular voting booths, and another 300 in special areas like hospitals, prisons, army, etc. We will print, we printed already 450 million ballot papers, and we'll do it in 12,335 different places around the country. Our budget is around 700 million New Israeli Shekels, a little less than 150 million dollars, and we'll do it splendidly".The elections mark the first electoral contest since the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack, amid significant shifts in the political landscape and the issues shaping voter priorities since the 2022 elections.