President Herzog casts his vote, urges Israelis to turn out: 'This is our day to go out, make an impact, and vote'
Herzog said he met a group of wounded IDF soldiers the night before and told them they went out to fight so that Israelis could exercise their democracy
President Isaac Herzog cast his ballot in the elections for the 26th Knesset on Tuesday at a polling station in Jerusalem. After submitting his vote, the president called on all Israeli citizens to go out and vote too.
“Michal and I are very proud to be here today as millions of Israelis will go to the ballot box to vote and take their fate into their hands in a true, proud, and dignified democracy,” Herzog said. “This is the story of Israel, an incredible nation going to vote and deciding on our future.”
“I call upon all citizens of the state: we are all equal; this is our day to go out, make an impact, and vote,” he said. “Tomorrow, we will all continue here together; we have no other country.”
Herzog said he met a group of wounded IDF soldiers participating in a rehabilitation program the night before. “I told them that, among other reasons, they went out to fight so that we could experience this day, so that we could exercise Israeli democracy,” he said, calling voting “a tremendous privilege.”
The president also thanked the Central Elections Committee and said he hoped for “a true celebration of democracy,” adding, “We will not let anyone spoil or sabotage this.”
According to the Central Elections Committee, there are over 7.3 million eligible voters, 12,018 polling stations, about 100,000 workers and 450 million ballots printed, on a budget of NIS 690 million ($223.3 million).
About 11% of eligible voters, or roughly 810,000 people, live abroad, and an estimated 67,000 are flying into Israel to vote. Tuesday’s election is the first since November 2022, before October 7, with approximately 333,000 more people eligible to vote.