Wednesday, October 28th

What happened

Israeli exit polls suggested electoral deadlock, with neither main bloc projected to secure a governing majority. Netanyahu’s bloc was projected near 50 seats, the opposition near 52 seats, and Arab-led parties near 17 seats. Likud was projected to remain the largest party, but that did not give Netanyahu a clear route to power. Israel’s parliament has 120 seats, and a governing coalition needs at least 61. The vote became a referendum on Netanyahu after the October 7 security failure and years of war. Opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot demanded an inquiry; Netanyahu resisted one. Likud alleged vote stealing, while election authorities said no systematic tampering was found. Official results are due November 4.

What happened

Flávio Bolsonaro withdrew his request to annul Brazil’s presidential runoff election. He had refused to accept President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s victory, then said he would serve as Lula’s opposition after his party recognized the result. Lula won with about 51.8% of the vote, beating Bolsonaro by roughly 4.4 million votes. Brazil’s Supreme Court had extended voting by two hours nationwide after transport complaints, including a Lula campaign claim that bus shortages kept voters from polls. Bolsonaro said the extension was improper and hurt confidence in the result. Officials defended the certified outcome, and the added voting period involved fewer than 35,000 ballots.

What happened

Democrats lead Republicans 52% to 44% among likely congressional voters in the PBS News/NPR/Marist poll. Speaker Mike Johnson rejected polls showing Democrats ahead, saying Republican voters answer fewer surveys; polling analysts say recent midterm polling has generally been accurate. The Nov. 3 midterms will decide whether Republicans keep narrow congressional majorities or Democrats gain power to limit President Donald Trump’s agenda. Cost-of-living anger and the Iran war are putting Republican-held seats in play. Trump urged Republicans to vote as if he were on the ballot. More than 30 million ballots are already cast. Democrats have a strong chance to win the House, while Senate control remains uncertain.