For Israelis living overseas, Election Day looks very different from the way it does in most democracies. There are no absentee ballots for ordinary citizens, no voting by mail, and, with only a handful of exceptions, no polling stations at Israeli embassies.
Voting requires something far more complicated: booking a flight, taking time off work, and returning to Israel. That reality has taken on new significance ahead of the 2026 election, which many Israelis, both at home and abroad, see as one of the most consequential in the country’s history.
Against that backdrop, a new initiative called Fly & Vote seeks to help Israelis living overseas make the journey back to Israel and cast their ballots.
The initiative, launched by AID Coalition, has already attracted nearly 20,000 registrations from Israelis around the world alongside thousands of additional potential voters expected to register.
While not every registration will necessarily become a plane ticket, organizers say the response reflects something deeper than travel logistics: a desire among many Israelis abroad to remain active participants in the country’s democratic life despite living far from home.
Batell Blaish-Sultanik, co-founder and CEO of AID Coalition, introduced the initiative at the 2026 Jerusalem Post New York Conference, where she also presented findings from a survey conducted among 4,500 Israelis living abroad. Some 84% say they believe the next election is among the most important in Israel’s history. Seventy-three percent said they would like to travel to Israel to vote, while 45% said they would do whatever it takes to exercise their democratic right.
“Even here at the conference, I’m hearing the very same message that led us to establish this initiative in the first place – Israelis living abroad want to come and vote in the upcoming election. It is important to them to be present and have a voice,” she said. “The challenge is not the desire to participate, but the ability to do so.”
The survey offers a snapshot of a community that often remains deeply connected to events in Israel despite building lives elsewhere. Many continue to follow Israeli politics closely, return regularly to visit family and friends, maintain professional ties with Israel and, in times of crisis, mobilize on behalf of the country from abroad. For many of them, voting is not a question of willingness but of practicality. A return trip to Israel can require thousands of dollars, days away from work, and complicated family arrangements, particularly for those living in North America or Australia.
Fly & Vote was created to help bridge those logistical barriers. The initiative forms part of the work of AID Coalition, an organization established to strengthen and preserve the democratic foundations of the State of Israel.
ALONGSIDE FLY&VOTE, the organization supports projects in Israel and the United States, including promoting the Nova Exhibition in the US, which presents the story of the Oct. 7 attack on the Nova music festival, as well as supporting the Resilience Center in Sderot, which provides emotional and psychological support to residents of the city.
According to the organization, interest in the initiative has grown steadily since its launch. “This number confirms what we already knew – there is a large community of Israelis abroad that wants to be part of the decisions shaping the future of the State of Israel,” she said. “Tens of thousands of people have signed up because they understand the significance of the upcoming election and refuse to give up their democratic right to vote and influence the future of Israel, especially in light of the difficult years the country has endured.”
The initiative has also sparked a broader public conversation about the place of Israelis living overseas in the country’s democratic process. Israel is unusual among democratic countries in requiring almost all of its citizens to be physically present in order to vote, a system that means participation can depend as much on geography and financial means as on civic engagement.
For the organizers of Fly & Vote, however, the initiative is not about changing Israel’s voting system or encouraging support for any particular political position. They say its purpose is considerably narrower: helping Israelis who have already decided to vote overcome the practical obstacles to doing so.
Blaish-Sultanik addressed criticism that has accompanied the initiative since its launch.
“Claims are being made about the initiative that have no basis in reality. The sole purpose of Fly & Vote is to ensure that every Israeli who wants to vote has a way to get to Israel and do so. We do not ask people how they vote, and we are not trying to persuade anyone. We simply provide logistical assistance to Israelis who want to vote and exercise their democratic right.”
Another criticism sometimes directed at Israelis living abroad is that those who no longer reside there permanently should not help determine its political future. Blaish-Sultanik rejects that distinction, arguing that citizenship and connection to Israel extend beyond physical residence.
“They are Israelis in every sense of the word. They are among the first to board a plane when war breaks out, they strengthen Israel’s economy, amplify Israel’s voice around the world, and contribute to advocacy efforts on behalf of the country. I don’t think anyone would object to [NBA player] Deni Avdija or [actress] Gal Gadot coming to vote, just like any Israeli living in Israel. A person’s connection to Israel is not measured by the number of kilometers separating them from it.”
The discussion reflects a broader reality that has become increasingly visible in recent years. Millions of Israelis maintain personal, professional, and emotional ties across borders, and major national events, from elections to wars, often resonate just as powerfully among communities abroad as they do within Israel itself.
For many, distance has not weakened their sense of involvement but has instead reinforced the importance of finding ways to remain connected. Whether all of the nearly 20,000 registered participants ultimately make the trip home remains to be seen. But the level of interest already signals a significant appetite among Israelis abroad to participate directly in shaping the country’s future at a moment many consider especially significant, and for Blaish-Sultanik, that aspiration remains the initiative’s defining objective “to ensure that every Israeli who wants to vote in the 2026 election can do so.”
“If we succeed in helping tens of thousands of Israelis travel to Israel and participate in the election, we will know that we have strengthened civic engagement and Israeli democracy.”
Written in cooperation with AID Coalition.