Israeli voters began casting ballots on Tuesday in parliamentary elections that will determine whether longtime Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remains in office after a decade in power, The Associated Press reported.
During the campaign leading up to polling day, the rival parties waged a vitriolic online battle, accusing each other of corruption, fostering bigotry and being soft on security, Reuters reported.
Netanyahu's closest rival in the campaign was Benny Gantz, a former chief of the armed forces. Gantz's centrist Blue and White party, which includes other former generals, has challenged Netanyahu's hitherto unrivaled national security credentials.
After an election eve visit to the Western Wall, Netanyahu, 69, voted at a polling station in Jerusalem on Tuesday morning, accompanied by his wife, Sara.
"This is truly the essence of democracy and we should be blessed with it," he said, shaking hands with election officials and posing for selfies.
"With God's help the State of Israel will prevail. Thank you very much. Go to vote."
He also posted links on Twitter and Facebook and called for voters to get in touch.
"This morning I am asking to speak with you, personally, through messenger. All it takes is one click on the link. I'm waiting," he said.
Gantz, taking a different approach, shared a video of himself at the voting station set to music, without any direct comments. His party co-leader, Yair Lapid, posted a video of himself kickboxing with a note saying he was "fighting for every vote".
Gantz cast his own ballot in his hometown of Rosh Haayin in central Israel alongside his wife, Revital, and called on all Israelis to vote.
"Go to vote. Choose whoever you believe in. Respect each other and let us all wake up for a new dawn, a new history," he said.
Polling stations opened at 7 am local time across the country and close at 10 pm. About 6.4 million eligible voters will be able to cast their ballots at more than 10,000 stations. According to AP, official results will begin streaming in early on Wednesday, but it may take far longer for a final verdict to come through.
Nearly 40 parties are running, but no more than a dozen are expected to get a candidate into the Knesset, or parliament. Election Day in Israel is a national holiday, with turnout expected to be high in good weather.
As many as a half-dozen parties are teetering along the threshold for entering the Knesset. A failure by any of these parties to get the required 3.25 percent of total votes cast could have a dramatic impact on who ultimately forms the next coalition.
An Israeli government needs a parliamentary majority to rule, and since no party has ever earned more than half of the 120 seats in the Knesset, a coalition is required.
Netanyahu and Gantz have ruled out sitting together in a coalition, so the next prime minister will likely come down to how many supporters each candidate can recruit.
Israel's president, Reuven Rivlin, could play an important role. Though largely a ceremonial post, the president is responsible for choosing the candidate with the best chance of building a stable coalition government as prime minister.