Israel's Parliament Dissolves, General Elections Scheduled for October 27

Israel officially entered election mode on Friday after the Knesset dissolved itself , paving the way for general elections on October 27 following the completion of a rare full four-year parliamentary term .

The parliament concluded its final sitting after an extended legislative session in which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition pushed through a series of significant and controversial bills before lawmakers departed for the summer recess. With the dissolution approved, the Knesset will not reconvene before Israelis cast their votes later this year.

The upcoming election comes at a politically sensitive time for Netanyahu, whose government faces growing challenges as the country approaches the third anniversary of the October 7 attack , an event that triggered nearly three years of conflict. Recent opinion polls indicate increasing support for opposition parties led by former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and a prominent centrist former military chief.

Among the final measures passed by parliament were two bills effectively exempting ultra-Orthodox men from mandatory military service , a move widely seen as an effort to secure the backing of ultra-Orthodox parties in any future governing coalition.

Lawmakers also approved legislation linked to the government's judicial overhaul agenda , including measures to expand government influence over broadcast media and reduce the authority of the attorney general. The reforms have faced sustained criticism from legal experts and opposition leaders, while Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara has remained one of the strongest institutional opponents of the proposals.

Announcing the dissolution, Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana highlighted that the parliament had completed its full four-year mandate, passed nine national budgets and approved hundreds of laws. Completing a full parliamentary term is uncommon in Israel, where governments frequently collapse before completing their tenure.

Israel has experienced repeated political instability in recent years, holding five national elections between 2019 and 2022 , with elections taking place far more frequently than in most other developed democracies.