The vast majority of Israel’s 6.3 million eligible voters will have to wait until April 9 before they can cast their ballot, but for some 5,000 Israeli diplomats stationed in 96 embassies and consulates around the globe, elections start on April 3, Israeli time.
From Amman to El Salvador to Ghana, a total of 5,137 Israelis will be able to vote in 77 countries. Each polling station is open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. local time.
Israeli representatives at the consulate in Wellington, New Zealand, will be the first to vote, with ambassador Itzhak Gerberg expected to cast the first ballot. On the other side of the international dateline, the Israeli mission in San Francisco will be the last to close voting, some 36 hours later.
According to Israeli law, private citizens living abroad cannot vote unless they come to Israel. But the exception made for diplomats also applies to emissaries sent abroad by the Jewish Agency, Keren Kayemet, Keren Hayesod and the World Zionist Organization. In addition, their spouses and children (aged 18-20) can also cast a ballot abroad.
Final results in the national ballot are expect to trickle in overnight on April 9.