Polling stations opened in Israel on Tuesday morning for a pivotal general election that is expected to be a tight race between the parties led by incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former military chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot.

Tuesday's election is the first time Israelis will vote since the Hamas attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 and subsequent war in Gaza, as well as since the joint U.S.-Israeli 12-day war on Iran in 2025 and the ongoing U.S.-Israeli campaign against Tehran which was launched in February.

Voting ends at 10 p.m. local time -- 4 p.m. ET -- after which exit polls are expected to give an indication of who is in the lead.