Jerusalem (AsiaNews/Agencies) - Acting Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has declared victory in the election, saying it is now time to "create a new chapter" for the country. In a speech to members of his centrist Kadima party, he appealed to Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas early Wednesday to enter into negotiations over the permanent borders of Israel, but added that Israel would act alone if peace efforts remained stalled.

With nearly all votes counted, Kadima has 28 of the 120 seats in parliament. But this margin of victory was much less decisive than the party hoped and Ehud Olmert could have trouble forming and maintaining a stable coalition.

Electoral officials said voter turnout was 62.3%, the lowest in Israel's history and 5.7 percentage points lower than in the 2003 election. With 99% of ballots counted, Kadima has won 21.8% or 28 seats, with the centre-left Labour party coming second with 20 seats, a 15.1% share.

Under Israel's complex proportional representation, the exact number of seats may change as the final votes are redistributed.

The right-wing former ruling party, Likud, is trailing with just 11 seats - behind the ultra-Orthodox Shas, with 13, and the far-right Yisrael Beitenu party, which proposes forcibly transferring Arab towns inside Israel to Palestinian territory, polling 12.

Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu admitted they had "suffered a tough blow" but vowed to rebuild the party. Since the creation of Israel in 1948, the country has been governed either by the Labour or Likud parties, so a Kadima victory is historic.