Former military Chief Benny Gantz was projected to win 36 or 37 seats, with PM Benjamin Netanyahu taking 33 to 36. Having both men claim victory in the elections.

Allied to Prime Minister Netanyahu, Right-wing parties had a greater possibility of forming a government coalition, two exit polls predicted.

But a third exit poll predicted that the bloc would be tied with centre-left parties allied to Mr Gantz.

“We won! The Israeli public has had its say!” Blue and White said in a statement. “These elections have a clear winner and a clear loser.”

Mr Netanyahu was also celebrating at his party’s election headquarters in Tel Aviv.

“It is a night of colossal victory,” he said. “I’m very touched that, for the fifth time, the people of Israel have believed in me.”

Throughout Israel’s history, the country has always had coalition governments, no party has ever won a majority in Israel’s 120-seat parliament, the Knesset.

In Tel Aviv, a huge cheer went off as the first poll was released at the election night event for former military chief Benny Gantz.

His supporters expressed confidence that Israel could be on the brink of a new centre-ground government.

And an activist said amid the roars of celebration to a BBC reporter that “Change is on the way.”

But the outcome is far from clear. At the last election, the exit polls were dramatically wrong.

If there is a close result, that shows the real politics has started as both parties’ canvas Israel’s president for rights to start planning to assemble a coalition.