Ohana and Levin up, Edelstein and Hanegbi crash out in Likud exit polls

Initial exit polls after the Likud party finally closes its primaries show Yariv Levin and Amir Ohana rewarded for their loyalty to party leader Benjamin Netanyahu with the two taking the top spots up for grabs.

Rounding out the top five behind Netanyahu, Levin and Ohana are Yoav Kish and David Amsalem, according to the exit poll from Direct Polls. A separate exit poll shared by Channel 12 reporter Amit Segal shows Yoav Gallant ahead of Kish and Amsalem.

Boaz Bismuth, who quit as editor of Israel Hayom to throw his hat in the ring, gets the highest spot for a newcomer, with one poll forecasting him in the 15th slot and another in 10th place, making him a likely shoo-in to get his picture in the paper as a Knesset member.

Longtime Likud stalwarts Yuli Edelstein, Tzachi Hanegbi, David Bitan and Haim Katz are projected to be left out in the cold after placing in spots 20 and up: Likud’s many reserved spots, not yet filled, mean anyone over 20 is highly unlikely to enter the Knesset.

Most others making the top of the roster are familiar faces shuffling a few seats here or there.