Israeli President to Name Mandate-Holder as Arab Parties Back Eisenkot
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President Isaac Herzog will announce on Sunday who will be tasked with forming a new Israeli government after Gadi Eisenkot received the most parliamentary recommendations, while two Arab-majority lists, holding 19 seats, have pledged support.
President Isaac Herzog said he will announce on Sunday the lawmaker he will task with forming a new government after the opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot received the highest number of parliamentary recommendations following the Oct. 27 election. Herzog held a second day of consultations with parties, noting that while Eisenkot was recommended by 67 members and Benjamin Netanyahu by 46, the final decision must consider the mutual vetoes among blocs.
Eisenkot’s Yashar party said voters “have chosen change and expressed a complete lack of confidence in outgoing Prime Minister Netanyahu and his government,” and called for an “immediate establishment of a national emergency government.”
Two Arab-majority lists, which together won 19 seats – a historic high – announced their backing of Eisenkot, making them potential kingmakers. However, the right-wing Israel Beiteinu party, also in Eisenkot’s camp, said it will not join a government that relies on Arab parties, citing the Arab lists’ refusal to label Hamas explicitly as a terror group.
United Torah Judaism, an ultra-Orthodox party that previously supported Netanyahu, declined to recommend any candidate for the mandate, stating it will not back either leader. The party, along with Shas, continues to press for the preservation of military-service exemptions for religious students.
If Herzog assigns the mandate, the designated lawmaker will have 28 days, with a possible 14-day extension, to assemble a coalition. Netanyahu’s bloc holds 53 seats, while Eisenkot’s bloc has 48. Netanyahu has accused the prospect of an alliance with Arab lawmakers of being influenced by foreign money and questioned Arab citizens’ loyalty.