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Kadima has pulled ahead of Likud and now holds a two-seat edge with 91 percent of the votes counted. The ballots of soldiers, who usually favor nationalist parties, will be tallied on Wednesday and may cause a near tie between the two leading parties.
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Kadima now is projected to win 29 seats in the Knesset, two more than Likud. In third place is Israel Is Our Home (Yisrael Beiteinu), with 15 Knesset Members, followed by Labor with 13 MKs, Shas with 11 MKs and Meretz with only three seats.
Ichud Leumi (National Union) is projected to win four mandates, compared with three for the Jewish Home faction. United Torah Judaism (UTJ) will win four seats, according to the returns. Three Arab parties will increase their Knesset representation by two and will have 11 MKs, according to the preliminary results.
In a speech to supporters, Likud chairman Binyamin Netanyahu said that the voters clearly have made their choice for a government of nationalist and religious parties, which have the potential of forming a government with at least 64 Knesset Members.
"The government under my control will have to deal with very difficult challenges," he commented. Netanyahu singled out the threat of a nuclear Iran and the current economic crises as the immediate issues that must be dealt with
Kadima chairwoman Tzipi Livni claimed victory and called on Netanyahu to join a national unity government, an offer he refused last September when she tried to form a coalition after taking over from outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as head of Kadima.