With less than two weeks to go before Israel’s election, exercising the democratic right to vote in the election of a new Knesset (Israeli Parliament), the Ambassador of Israel to Nepal H.E. Shmulik Arie Bass, along with Deputy Chief at Mission Ms. Janan Bebar and other Israeli mission staff cast their votes at the Embassy of Israel in Nepal Thursday-15 October.
After casting vote, the Ambassador Shmulik Arie Bass said, “Today is a special day- the Day of Democracy in Israel. After several years, this election is taking place in accordance with the law, exactly four years after the last parliament, as it should be in a democratic state.”
“Today, we are voting for a new parliament. I am exercising my right to vote, as a citizen of a democratic state,” said the Israeli envoy.
Following the completion of voting, the sealed ballot envelopes will be flown to Israel and sent to the Knesset for counting of the total votes.
The legislative elections are scheduled to be held in Israel on 27 October, 2026. to elect all 120 members of the 26th Knesset.
The outgoing current 25th Knesset became the first Israeli legislature to complete its full four-year term without early dissolution since 1988, ending the prolonged political crisis of 2018–2022 that saw five consecutive snap elections.
According to the Israeli constitution, Israel’s voters do not elect the prime minister directly; instead, the prime minister must assemble a coalition commanding a majority of the Knesset’s 120 seats.
In this proportional representation system, parties must collect a 3.25% electoral threshold to enter the legislature.
According to the report, there are 38 parties running in these elections. However, it is also projected that out of 38, only 15 parties could meet the 3.25% vote threshold – the percentage of the total vote that a party needs to clear to gain any seats in the Knesset.
Report said, the first ballots of the 2026 Knesset election were cast overnight Wednesday-Thursday, as voting opened at Israeli diplomatic missions and their families around the globe ahead of the October 27 election.
The first embassy to open its polling station was the Israeli embassy in Wellington, New Zealand, where voting began at 9 a.m. Thursday local time, or 11 p.m. the previous night Israel time, the report added.
In total, 101 polling stations opened at 99 Israeli diplomatic missions globally for around 4,800 eligible people to cast their votes, it said. Meanwhile, IDF to begin early voting next week for soldiers deployed on bases, overseas
According to a joint statement from the Foreign Ministry and the Central Elections Committee (of Israel), the largest polling station outside of Israel is the consulate in New York City, where over 700 people are eligible to vote.
Israel is one of a handful of democracies that do not allow citizens to vote if they are abroad, with absentee voting only available for envoys, diplomatic staff, including military attachés, and their families, the report added.
