Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a victory speech to supporters of his Likud Party in the wee hours of Tuesday morning after his stunning, come-from-behind victory in Israel’s third successive elections.
Netanyahu came onstage singing his party song, and thanked his supporters for their hard work in securing the win.
“I remember our first victory in 1996. It was an historic victory,” Netanyahu said, in Hebrew. “But this victory, this time, is at least as sweet, if not sweeter. An even greater victory! Because it was a victory against all the odds.”
Netanyahu had trailed in polls until the final days, and still faces criminal indictment on corruption charges (which his supporters claim are baseless and politically motivated).
But voters rallied to his side for a variety of factors.
Report: 48 More Christians Slaughtered in Nigeria, Hundreds of Homes Destroyed
Trump-linked companies and family crypto ventures take a hit in second term
FBI’s renewed push in DC pipe bomb case shows how fresh eyes can change a stalled investigation
Marine who was killed in vehicle training accident at California base identified
Police say criminal illegal alien injured 4 officers in Nebraska gas station shootout
NYC mayor-elect tells residents how to resist ICE agents knocking at their door in new video
Oklahoma trooper helps deliver newborn on highway shoulder: ‘The baby is coming!’
Congress unveils $900B defense bill targeting China with tech bans, investment crackdown, US troop pay raise
Trump adds his birthday as free national park day while axing MLK Day and Juneteenth
Obama Proves He’s Stuck in the Past, Offers Desperate Defense of Legacy Media
In Texas cattle country, one rancher welcomes Trump’s focus on decades of thin margins
MTG says she was denied security detail despite 773 death threats
A Detailed Account of the Nightmarish National Guard Shooting: Court Docs
Pearl Harbor remembrance ceremony marks 84 years since attack
Under the New ‘Trump Accounts,’ Your Baby Could Qualify for $1K: Here’s What to Know
One may have been the indirect influence of American politics. Israeli voters watching Democrats choose Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) as their frontrunner may have been convinced to stick with their tough-minded leader. Netanyahu came to power in 2009 promising to oppose pressure from then-newly-elected President Barack Obama.
Netanyahu cited his record. “Do you know why [voters] put faith in us?” he asked. “Because they know that we brought the greatest decade in the history of the State of Israel.”
He talked about the country’s economic progress — which defied the recession that gripped much of the rest of the world — saying Israel had become “a country that is good to live in,” in terms of quality of life.
He also cited his good relationships with foreign leaders — not just with President Donald Trump, but also with Muslim nations.
One supporter waved a “Trump 2020: Keep America Great” prominently at the Likud victory party.
Report: 48 More Christians Slaughtered in Nigeria, Hundreds of Homes Destroyed
Trump-linked companies and family crypto ventures take a hit in second term
FBI’s renewed push in DC pipe bomb case shows how fresh eyes can change a stalled investigation
Marine who was killed in vehicle training accident at California base identified
Police say criminal illegal alien injured 4 officers in Nebraska gas station shootout
NYC mayor-elect tells residents how to resist ICE agents knocking at their door in new video
Oklahoma trooper helps deliver newborn on highway shoulder: ‘The baby is coming!’
Congress unveils $900B defense bill targeting China with tech bans, investment crackdown, US troop pay raise
Trump adds his birthday as free national park day while axing MLK Day and Juneteenth
Obama Proves He’s Stuck in the Past, Offers Desperate Defense of Legacy Media
In Texas cattle country, one rancher welcomes Trump’s focus on decades of thin margins
MTG says she was denied security detail despite 773 death threats
A Detailed Account of the Nightmarish National Guard Shooting: Court Docs
Pearl Harbor remembrance ceremony marks 84 years since attack
Under the New ‘Trump Accounts,’ Your Baby Could Qualify for $1K: Here’s What to Know
Exit polls projected that Likud had won roughly 36 or 37 seats in Israel’s 120-seat Knesset, nearly enough to form a governing majority with small conservative parties. The opposition Blue and White was projected to win 33 or 33.
Though it was not clear whether Netanyahu would have enough seats to reach a coalition of 61, it was presumed that he would be able to do so — and without the help of a smaller spoiler party that had stymied him twice before.
The vote-counting process is expected to take more than 48 hours, with final results only determined by Thursday morning.
“The time has come to end the cycle of elections and to establish a government in Israel!” Netanyahu concluded.
Story cited here.
