Israel's Election Pulls Passengers Back to Ben-Gurion as Departures Drop to 245,000
Ben-Gurion Airport figures show inbound traffic topping outbound traffic by more than 90,000 between October 17 and October 27, a gap Channel 13 estimated could equal about two Knesset seats.
By Claire Darwish ·
Israel's October 27 Knesset election is reshaping passenger flows at Ben-Gurion Airport, with departures running below prior-year levels and arrivals pulling ahead of outbound traffic. Channel 13 reported the shift on Sunday, citing airport data covering October 17 through October 27.
The figures show roughly 245,000 passengers left Israel over that stretch in 2026, against 270,000 in 2025 and 323,000 in 2022, when Israel last held a general election. The drop comes even though more aircraft and flights are available now than in those earlier periods.
Inbound traffic moves the other way. The gap between incoming and outgoing passengers has passed 90,000 in 2026, compared with about 77,000 over the same dates in 2025. No large-scale airlift of special flights was organized to bring voters home; arrivals have relied on existing aviation capacity.
Channel 13 estimated that 90,000 people would translate to roughly two Knesset seats, if they were eligible voters who cast valid ballots. The passenger counts do not show how many returned specifically to vote, and they include children and foreign nationals who cannot vote in Israeli elections.
The electoral threshold stands at 3.25% of valid votes, so turnout shifts can determine whether parties near that line enter the next Knesset. A Fly&Vote survey estimated about 67,000 Israelis living abroad intended to travel to Israel to vote, drawing on registration data and a voluntary survey rather than confirmed arrivals.
Most Israeli citizens abroad cannot vote remotely and must return to cast ballots. Fly&Vote, run by the AID Coalition, has worked to assist overseas Israelis with the process, though its activities were restricted after legal proceedings initiated by Likud.
Alon Ben-Gurion, grandson of Israel's first prime minister David Ben-Gurion, traveled to Israel from the United States with his family and went to Tiberias to vote, Channel 13 reported. In August, organizers arranged dedicated flights from New York and Lisbon to meet demand from overseas Israelis seeking to participate.
Under Israel's electoral system, the 120 Knesset seats are distributed proportionally among parties that clear the threshold, so votes from returning Israelis can affect the final seat allocation depending on how those ballots split among parties.
Source: The Jerusalem Post
