Prime Minister BenjaminNetanyahu was on path for victory in Israel's elections after nearly complete results put him in position to extend his tenure in office.
Jerusalem - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was on path for victory in Israel's elections on Wednesday after nearly complete results put him in position to form a right-wing coalition and further extend his long tenure in office.
The result would seem to leave President Reuven Rivlin, whose task it is to ask one of the candidates to form a government, with little choice but to pick Netanyahu.Final results were expected by Thursday afternoon, with ballots for soldiers and other special categories of voters yet to be counted. Earlier while addressing cheering supporters who waived Israeli flags at an event hall in Tel Aviv, Gantz called it a "historic day."
The election was in many ways a referendum on the premier who has built a reputation as guarantor of the country's security and economic growth, but whose populism and alleged corruption left many ready for change. True to form, Netanyahu issued a deeply controversial pledge only three days before the election, saying he planned to annex Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank should he win.
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