90,000 Net Returnees Ahead of Israeli Ballot

Channel 13 reported on Sunday that passenger traffic at Ben-Gurion Airport has shifted sharply in the days leading up to the October 27 Knesset election. The broadcast compared airport figures from October 17 to 27 across three years: 2022, 2025, and 2026. The data indicates that many Israelis canceled outbound trips while a large number of citizens abroad returned home.

Departures from Israel dropped to approximately 245,000 during this ten-day window in 2026. That figure is lower than the 270,000 recorded in 2025 and the 323,000 recorded in 2022, the last general election year. The decline occurs despite an increase in available aircraft and flights since 2022. The channel suggested that voters are rearranging travel plans to ensure they can cast ballots.

Arrivals to the country exceeded departures by more than 90,000 in 2026. This gap is wider than the 77,000 difference recorded during the same period in 2025. No special airlift was organized for the returning citizens, who used existing commercial capacity. Channel 13 estimated that 90,000 people represent roughly two Knesset seats, assuming all were eligible voters who cast valid ballots.

The totals include children and foreign nationals who cannot vote, so the exact number of returning voters is unclear. Israel’s electoral threshold is 3.25% of valid votes, a level that can determine whether marginal parties retain seats in the 120-member parliament. Small shifts in turnout could influence which parties clear that bar.

A recent survey by Fly&Vote estimated that 67,000 Israelis living abroad planned to travel home to vote. The initiative, run by the AID Coalition, assisted citizens with logistics, though its activities faced restrictions after legal proceedings initiated by Likud. Most Israelis abroad must return to vote because remote voting is not widely available.

Organizers arranged dedicated flights from New York and Lisbon in August to meet demand. Alon Ben-Gurion, grandson of Israel’s first prime minister, was among those who returned. He arrived from the United States with his family and traveled to Tiberias to vote.