Israel 1981 legislative election
What was the result of the 1981 legislative election in Israel?
Likud won 48 of 120 seats with 37.1% of the vote. 78.5% of registered voters cast a ballot.
Israel- Held:
- Final result
- ParlGov, read 5 October 2026
Which party won the most seats?
Final results from ParlGov, read : Likud won 48 of 120 seats with 37.1% of the vote; 78.5% of registered voters cast a ballot, down 0.7 points on 1977.
- Likud 48 +5 seats 37.1% +3.7 points
- Alignment / Labor 47 +15 seats 36.6% +12.0 points
- National Religious Party / The Jewish Home 6 −6 seats 4.9% −4.3 points
- Agudat Yisrael 4 0 seats 3.7% +0.4 points
- New Communist List / Democratic Front 4 −1 seat 3.4% −1.2 points
- Tehiya 3 2.3%
- Movement for the Heritage of Israel 3 2.3%
- Ometz 2 1.6%
- Shinui 2 1.5%
- Ratz 1 0 seats 1.4% +0.2 points
- Seats won
- Change on the previous election at the right
- Share of the vote
- Share at the previous election
- Change in points at the right
Changes are against the Israel 1977 legislative election, party by party.
- Likud48
- Alignment / Labor47
- National Religious Party / The Jewish Home6
- Agudat Yisrael4
- New Communist List / Democratic Front4
- Movement for the Heritage of Israel3
- Tehiya3
- Ometz2
- Shinui2
- Ratz1
Key numbers
37.1%
Share of the vote won by Likud
Likud won 48 of 120 seats. A majority needs 61.
+15 seats
Seats gained by Alignment / Labor
The largest gain in seats compared with 1977. National Religious Party / The Jewish Home lost 6 seats.
78.5%
Voter turnout
Down 0.7 points on 1977.
Seats and votes by party
| Party | Seats | ± seats | % | ± points | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Likud | 48 | +5 | 37.1 | +3.7 | 718,941 |
| Alignment / Labor | 47 | +15 | 36.6 | +12.0 | 708,536 |
| National Religious Party / The Jewish Home | 6 | −6 | 4.9 | −4.3 | 95,232 |
| Agudat Yisrael | 4 | 0 | 3.7 | +0.4 | 72,312 |
| New Communist List / Democratic Front | 4 | −1 | 3.4 | −1.2 | 64,918 |
| Tehiya | 3 | 2.3 | 44,700 | ||
| Movement for the Heritage of Israel | 3 | 2.3 | 44,466 | ||
| Ometz | 2 | 1.6 | 30,600 | ||
| Shinui | 2 | 1.5 | 29,837 | ||
| Ratz | 1 | 0 | 1.4 | +0.2 | 27,921 |
| Poalei Agudat Yisrael | 0 | −1 | 0.9 | −0.4 | 17,090 |
± is the change against the Israel 1977 legislative election, party by party.
Votes by party
- Likud 718,941
- Alignment / Labor 708,536
- National Religious Party / The Jewish Home 95,232
- Agudat Yisrael 72,312
- New Communist List / Democratic Front 64,918
- Tehiya 44,700
- Movement for the Heritage of Israel 44,466
- Ometz 30,600
- Shinui 29,837
- Ratz 27,921
- Poalei Agudat Yisrael 17,090
ParlGov lists parties with at least 1 percent of the vote or 2 seats, so the rows do not add up to the valid votes.
How many people voted?
78.5% of the 2,490,014 registered voters cast a ballot (1,954,609 ballots), down 0.7 points on 1977. 1,937,366 of them were valid votes. The lowest turnout since 1951 in our data.
How do the votes compare with the seats?
- Likud37.1% of votes40.0% of seats
- Alignment / Labor36.6% of votes39.2% of seats
- National Religious Party / The Jewish Home4.9% of votes5.0% of seats
- Agudat Yisrael3.7% of votes3.3% of seats
- New Communist List / Democratic Front3.4% of votes3.3% of seats
- Movement for the Heritage of Israel2.3% of votes2.5% of seats
- Tehiya2.3% of votes2.5% of seats
- Ometz1.6% of votes1.7% of seats
- Shinui1.5% of votes1.7% of seats
- Ratz1.4% of votes0.8% of seats
The Gallagher index of disproportionality is 2.9 (0 when seats follow votes exactly); the effective number of parties is 3.6 by votes and 3.1 by seats; Likud led Alignment / Labor by 0.5 points of the vote.
Time and source Data as of