2006 Israeli Election
28 March 2006 · The Netanyahu era and the deadlock cycle · 120 seats, 61 for a majority
After the election, the government was formed by the Kadima, Labor, Shas, and Gil parties, with the Yisrael Beiteinu party joining the government later. The Prime Minister was Ehud Olmert, leader of Kadima, who had been the acting prime minister going into the election.
Held in wartime. This election took place while the country was engaged in Gaza–Israel conflict (2006–present). Conflicts →
Prime Minister before
Ariel Sharon
Prime Minister (continued)
Ariel Sharon
Largest force
Kadima
29 of 120 seats
Turnout
63.5%
The result
| Share of the Knesset | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kadima | — | 29 | — | 690,901 | 22.0% | — | |
| Labor–Meimad | — | 19 | 0 | 472,366 | 15.1% | — | |
| Shas | — | 12 | +1 | 299,054 | 9.5% | — | |
| Likud | — | 12 | +26 | 281,996 | 9.0% | — | |
| Yisrael Beiteinu | — | 11 | +8 | 281,880 | 9.0% | — | |
| National Union–National Religious Party | — | 9 | +1 | 224,083 | 7.1% | — | |
| Gil | — | 7 | — | 185,759 | 5.9% | — | |
| United Torah Judaism | — | 6 | +1 | 147,091 | 4.7% | — |
15 further seats went to parties and independents outside the main contenders listed above.