Israelis voted on October 27 and, with more than 90 percent of the vote counted, there is still no clear winner.

The next government, like every government in Israel’s history, will have to be a coalition.

The question now is who can secure at least 61 of the Knesset’s 120 seats to form a government and become Israel’s next prime minister.

Global News Insight has built an interactive tool that lets you test different combinations of parties. It starts from the latest official results, and you can also enter your own seat numbers. Add parties until your coalition reaches 61 seats. You can add an entire bloc at once or select parties individually.

Who is ahead?

On the Central Elections Committee’s count, Likud is ahead as the largest single party, with 26 seats.

Netanyahu’s bloc stood at 52 seats, against 48 for Eisenkot’s. The Arab-led parties held the remaining 20.

Neither bloc is close to a majority. Netanyahu is nine seats short and Eisenkot 13. These figures are provisional and will shift as the final ballots, including those cast at diplomatic missions and in hospitals and prisons, are added to the count.

How many seats are needed?

Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, has 120 seats. Parties win seats in proportion to their share of the national vote, provided they clear the 3.25 percent threshold to enter parliament.

A government needs the support of at least 61 politicians to secure a majority.

Neither of the main blocs has reached that number in the exit polls or the initial count. The next step is to find enough parties willing to join forces to make up the difference.

Why is forming a government so difficult?

The Arab-led parties Ra’am and the Joint List hold the balance of power, with 20 seats between them on the current count. They are the only bloc with enough seats to carry either side past 61.

On the arithmetic alone, that makes them kingmakers. In practice, analysts say they are unlikely to play that role, because the refusal of other parties to govern with them works as a political veto.

Netanyahu has described a coalition with Arab parties as “shameful”, while leading figures in the Jewish-led opposition have also ruled out governing with them. Both Netanyahu and Eisenkot have rejected a partnership, citing a lack of shared values.

That leaves potential coalitions that may work on paper but face serious political barriers.

Which parties belong to each bloc?

Netanyahu’s bloc spans Likud, the ultra-Orthodox parties Shas and United Torah Judaism, and the far-right parties Religious Zionism, led by Bezalel Smotrich, and Otzma Yehudit, led by Itamar Ben-Gvir.

Eisenkot’s opposition bloc includes his Yashar party, the Together list associated with former prime ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beytenu and Yair Golan’s Democrats.

What happens next?

Once the results are certified, the president gives the mandate to the member of the Knesset considered most likely to assemble a majority.

That politician has 28 days to form a government, with a possible extension of up to 14 days. If they fail, another lawmaker can be given a chance. If no one can form a government, Israel may have to hold another election, as it did repeatedly between 2019 and 2022.

Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, with 19 years in office across three stints, remains caretaker prime minister while coalition negotiations unfold. He is also standing trial on corruption charges, which he denies.

Official results are due on November 4. Negotiations to form a government could take considerably longer.