Israeli PM Lapid concedes defeat to Netanyahu in election

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) —

Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid's office says he has conceded defeat to former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in this week's election.

A statement said Lapid congratulated Netanyahu and has instructed his office to prepare an organized transition of power.

“The state of Israel comes before any political consideration," Lapid said. "I wish Netanyahu success, for the sake of the people of Israel and the state of Israel.”

Lapid, who has served as interim prime minister for the past four months, made the announcement after a near-final vote count showed Netanyahu securing a parliamentary majority. Final results were expected later Thursday.

The former prime minister is expected to head the country’s most right-wing government in history when he takes power, likely in the coming weeks.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli election officials were tallying the final votes from national elections on Thursday, with former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looking likely to reclaim the premiership with a comfortable majority backed by far-right allies.

A last-minute surprise is still possible, if a small dovish group is able to sneak past the electoral threshold needed to enter parliament and hold back the size of Netanyahu’s majority. But the likelihood was small, and members of Netanyahu's expected coalition were already jockeying for portfolios in what will be Israel's most right-wing government.

Israel held its fifth election in four years on Tuesday, a protracted political crisis that saw voters divided over Netanyahu's fitness to serve while on trial for corruption. Some 90% of ballots were counted by Thursday morning and final results could come later in the day.

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