Netanyahu: My first coalition call would be to Bennett

  

"My first phone call will be to Bennett so he would form a national government with me, a bloc of the national camp," the Likud leader said at the polling station while voting with his wife.

 

"There will be no unity government with the Labor (Zionist Union) party… it\’s a party of contradictions," he added.

 

In a phone interview with Channel 10, Netanyahu elaborated: "We have a different approach. They (the Zionist Union) want to withdraw. I don\’t want to withdraw. If I put together the government, it will be a nationalist government."

  

Netanyahu\’s biggest rival for this election, Zionist Union chairman Isaac Herzog, voted at the Zahala School in Tel Aviv.

 

"Whoever wants to follow Bibi\’s (Netanyahu\’s) path of despair and disappointment will vote for him," Herzog said after casting his vote. "But whoever wants change, hope, and really a better future for Israel, will vote the Zionist Union lead by me."

  

Meanwhile, Herzog\’s co-leader Tzipi Livni cast her vote at another Tel Aviv voting station, and addressed her decision to relinquish her right to rotate as prime minister, should the Zionist Union form the coalition. "Herzog and I are partners, and our goal is to replace Netanyahu – not change chairs," Livni said.

 

Livni also commented on the right-wing rally in Tel Aviv\’s Rabin Square on Sunday, saying: "What happened at the square on Sunday demonstrates what we are fighting for. This is a struggle between Zionism and extremism."

  

Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Lieberman and his wife Ella voted at a polling station in Nokdim, a settlement in the West Bank.

 

"I urge all citizens of Israel to go and vote for a Zionist party – no matter if it\’s Meretz, Yisrael Beytenu, or Bayit Yehudi – what\’s most important is to go and vote for a Zionist party because it\’s important to preserve the Jewish and Zionist character of the State of Israel," Lieberman said.

  

Kulanu party leader Moshe Kahlon voted at the Hebrew Reali School of Haifa.

 

"We are at the climax of a long and exhausting campaign, but we feel great and I hope we will bring results in the evening. The more seats we have, the more tools we will have to create reforms for the benefit of the citizens of Israel," Kahlon said.

  

Bayit Yehudi leader Naftali Bennett voted at a polling station in Ra\’anana with his wife Galit. After casting his vote, he said: "Today Israel raises its head.

 

"This morning, I greatly miss Uri Orbach, who once said that the Bayit Yehudi is a bridge, not in the sense that one steps on it, but a bridge through which one can connect. Today, the people of Israel connect. Good morning Israel."

  

Shas chairman Aryeh Deri arrived at the Beit Yaakov School in Jerusalem to cast his vote. "Today is the day we have been waiting for, we worked very hard for this day. I hope that we will surprise all the pollsters tonight, and I have a feeling that the results will be surprising," Deri said.

  

Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid cast his vote in Tel Aviv and said: "This is, first of all, a celebration of democracy and I call on everyone to go to vote, whoever you vote for.

 

"We are fighting here for the State of Israel. We are also fighting against the possibility that at the end of the day, instead of a good government that will bring change and hope to the State of Israel, we\’ll end up with a Bibi-Buji unity government with the ultra-Orthodox parties," Lapid stated.

 

Such a unity government, Lapid said,  "will cancel the national burden equality law, return the money to the yeshivot and take public money meant for day care, single mothers and reducing crowding in classrooms and give it to corrupt political interest groups."

  

Meretz leader Zahava Gal-On voted in Petah Tikva. "I\’m very excited, I didn\’t sleep at night but I trust the Meretz voters. I have mixed feelings today of optimism accompanied by fear, but when it comes to the crunch, I put my faith in our voters."

  

Yachad leader Eli Yishai voted at the Har Nof neighborhood in Jerusalem. "The feeling is great…I call on all the (Yachad) activists to act in an exemplary manner, with restraint and courtesy," he said.

  

Joint Arab List leader Ayman Odeh voted at a polling station in Haifa and said: "Like every Arab citizen in the country, I am excited to vote and be a part of this history and the turning point that will fundamentally change the lives of Arab citizens and all citizens in this country."

  

President Reuven Rivlin cast his vote in Jerusalem and had a message to Israeli voters: "Take the fate of the country into your hands. Go and vote! It\’s not just a right, but also a duty, to a great extent."

 

“We are voting today for all our sakes; for our young and our old; for the residents around the Gaza Strip, for the residents on the northern border. Don’t leave the decision in the hands of others,” the president continued.

  

Rivlin\’s predecessor Shimon Peres voted at a polling station in Jerusalem and said: "Today, we are all affecting both Israel\’s future and its image by voting. I am excited to fulfill my right and duty as a citizen, and together, we will show the world that Israel is a vibrant democracy with equal rights for everyone.

 

"I call on all citizens of Israel – Jews, Arabs, Christians, Druze, Circassians, young and old – go and vote – today is the holiday of democracy and an important opportunity to exercise influence."

  

Israel kicked off its elections for the Knesset on Tuesday morning, with polls opening at 7am in more than 10,000 locations across the country.

 

Up for grabs are the 120 seats in the Knesset and the reins of leadership of the entire country, with the party winning the most seats traditionally securing the first invitation from the president – currently former Likud stalwart Reuven Rivlin – to form a new coalition government.