How genocidal war on Gaza is shaping Israel’s election

What the report says

Al Jazeera reports that Israel’s upcoming October 27 election is being shaped by the Gaza war that followed the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attacks. The article says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is campaigning on national security, arguing that he alone can protect Israelis from external threats, even as critics point to the security failures surrounding October 7 and the unresolved issue of captives.

The report places this in the context of a broader rightward shift in Israeli politics. It says the war has helped normalize harder-line positions on Palestinians, with far-right figures such as Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir gaining greater influence. Analysts cited by Al Jazeera describe a political climate in which some parties openly discuss expulsion, annexation, or continued military control over Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

Al Jazeera also notes that the election debate is not only about wartime policy but about the future direction of Israeli society and governance. It says public concern over October 7 remains high, while reports that Netanyahu may have received prior warnings about an attack have become part of the campaign conversation, though the article says they do not appear to have shifted polling in a major way.

The piece argues that the war has become inseparable from Israel’s domestic politics, with candidates competing to appear tougher on Palestinians and security. That matters, Al Jazeera says, because the election may deepen existing trends rather than produce a major political reset.