Voting for apartheid? Israeli elections 2026
What are the upcoming elections actually about? Beneath the general noise lies a historic reckoning: Israelis are being asked to endorse—openly and explicitly—the future of an apartheid regime “from the River to the Sea”. Thus, the central historical task of the “change bloc” running to replace Netanyahu is to erect a sturdy wall to halt this descent and prepare the ground for democratic rehabilitation and future stability.
The apartheid reality has several facets in these elections. First, there is an explicit political agenda. The current government—unlike its predecessors—has laid its cards on the table, declaring in broad daylight its aspiration to institutionalize a regime of Jewish supremacy throughout the entire country. It has acted with determination to suppress and erase Palestinian rights through a so-called “judicial reform”, massive expansion of colonial settlement in the occupied territories accompanied by Jewish terror and ethnic cleansing, widespread house demolition in the Negev, and the genocidal war in Gaza. Facing such a brazen blueprint for the future, any discussion of “Israeli democracy” is testament to the blindness that has led Israel to the brink of an abyss. Only the removal of the current regime will allow for a genuine discussion on this issue.
Second, blindness to the apartheid has distorted our language. Terms like “the Netanyahu bloc,” “the Right,” “supporters of settlement,” or “Greater Israel” are euphemisms that mask the destruction of democracy. For example, the term “right” originated from seating arrangements in the French parliament, but in Israel’s current reality, the right has completely severed its ties with the rules of democracy. We are dealing with a coalition of racist parties seeking to enshrine in law absolute Jewish supremacy across the land. While Hamas’s terror and massacres on October 7 provided fuel and legitimacy to accelerate oppression and dispossession, with or without Hamas, the bloc’s core objective remains unchanged: Jewish supremacy and the dismantling of Palestinian nationalism.
Third, the geography of the election has already solidified an apartheid reality. A fundamental principle of democracy dictates that all permanent residents under a government have equal power to shape their character at the ballot box. Yet millions of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza have been disenfranchised for decades, while Palestinian citizens of Israel are granted only partial and fragile rights—as demonstrated by the recent disqualification of a leader of the Balad Party – Sami Abu Shehadeh. No other state purporting to be a democracy includes millions of permanent residents without voting rights, who live alongside hundreds of thousands of citizens with full political rights, including sitting members of parliament and ministers. Therefore, beyond a wide range of other government failures, such as rampant corruption, skyrocketing cost of living (especially housing), and growing international isolation, the “elephant in the room” is this deepening apartheid regime.
Many will argue, with considerable justification, that Israeli apartheid is not a new phenomenon but has been decades in the making. The illusions of “the status quo” or the “conflict management” approach have served as a smoke screen to on-going Judaization. That is true, but given the current government’s explicit and blatant plans, and a 2025 Knesset vote rejecting a Palestinian state, these elections are more critical than ever. There is nowhere to hide: either active resistance to apartheid in broad daylight, or the nation’s descent into a long dark night.
Furthermore, the issue of apartheid transcends Netanyahu’s criminal leadership. Within the “change bloc” itself, there are elements that support perpetuating Jewish supremacy across the land. Consequently, the ambition to unseat Netanyahu—vital though it may be—falls far short of what is required. Forces within the bloc must strengthen their democratic agendas which must include Jewish-Arab partnership based on full equality.. In this light, the boycott of Arab parties by elements of the change bloc is not only a moral travesty and a form of political self-harm, but a central barrier to establishing any genuine democracy.
The choice before us is stark: another term under Netanyahu and his apartheid bloc (and even a nationalist “unity” government which may form between Netanyahu and parts of the current opposition), will signal that Israel cannot escape the death grip of institutionalized racism. Let us remember that apartheid regimes are condemned to prolonged eras of violence, civil war, economic crises, and perpetual insecurity. They are typically hit by sanctions and are isolated diplomatically. Many studies have shown that while currently supporting a hardline, the majority of Israeli citizens long for a long-term democratic and stable society. The continuation of the current criminal government will shatter those hopes.
Although the upcoming elections are far from fully “free or equal”, they still serve as a critical bulwark against Israel’s final descent into the pariah family of apartheid states. On Tuesday October 27, the responsibility rests squarely on our shoulders.
