JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel has begun voting in a highly charged election considered a referendum on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It is the country’s fourth election in the past two years. The country’s longest-serving prime minister and several rivals are racing to secure the 61-vote threshold required to govern in Israel’s 120-seat Knesset. Netanyahu is campaigning on his stewardship of Israel’s world-leading vaccination drive against COVID-19, as well as the diplomatic accords with four Arab nations. His opponents say Netanyahu is unfit to serve while he is fighting corruption charges and that he’s sought new elections to protect himself from prosecution. Opinion polls have forecast a tight contest, and results might not be known for days.
