article_snippet: The outgoing Israeli parliament and the latest opinion poll .
article_snippet: Despite Prime Minister Netanyahu's vitriol, the Zionist Union is tipped to come out on top in the election.
article_snippet: Final opinion polls published late last week put the Zionist Union ahead with 25-26 seats with Prime Minister Netanyahu's Likud taking 20-22 in the 120-seat Knesset.
article_snippet: The leader of the party which secures most votes does not necessarily become the next premier -- as in 2009 when the centrist Kadima party then headed by Livni effectively won the vote but lost the election in a race which brought Netanyahu to power for a second term. '
article_snippet: In 2009, (Likud) had a 100-percent chance of forming a government while the leader of the largest party, Tzipi Livni, had no chance whatsoever - and therefore she was not nominated,' Diskin said.
article_snippet: Under Israel's complex electoral system, the task of forming a government does not automatically fall to the centrist Kadima party then headed by Livni with the largest number of votes, but to the MP or party leader with the best chance of cobbling together a coalition with a parliamentary majority of 61.
highlights_snippet: Experts agree it's likely to be a referendum on the Netanyahu years .
  