The fragile and short -lived Israeli coalition government announced on Monday that they would submit a bill next week to dissolve parliament, set a stage for the fifth election in three years, and the possibility of returning to the longest prime minister’s authority in the country, Benjamin Netanyahu.
The four previous Israeli elections between 2019 and 2021 were basically a plebisite about whether Netanyahu could rule when facing a trial for serious corruption charges. Netanyahu, who was charged in November 2019, has denied the accusation.
After the bill was passed, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, leader of Yamina, the Right Wing Political Alliance, will resign, and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, Leader Leader of Liberal Centris Yesh Atid, will become a temporary PM until a new government is formed, according to the agreement on the distribution of ruling coalition power . The election will take place in the fall, according to the commentator.
Ideologically divided coalitions – the most diverse in the history of Israel – loss of a thin majority in April after the defense of parliamentary members from Bennett’s Yamina. The government faced its biggest setback on June 6, after the opposition, together with members of the rebel coalition, helped defeat the bill intended to renew the legal protection for Israeli settlers in the western bank occupied.
Selection process
Israel does not have a written constitution, and according to its Basic Law, the election for parliament is held every four years, unless Knesset decides the usual majority to disperse and trigger the initial elections.
Unlike in India, Israeli voters voted for parties, not certain candidates. All Israeli citizens aged 18 years and over meet the requirements to vote. Palestinians who live in the occupied area of Israel cannot choose.
There are 120 seats in Knesset, and to form the government, a party requires at least 61. However, no party has ever won the majority of themselves, and the ruling alliance consisting of 8-12 parties has become a norm. These parties represent the interests of certain groups, and coalition constituents can hold a conflicting or competitive position.
After the Knesset members were elected, the President of Israel chose the candidate he believed to have the best opportunity to form a coalition. Candidates, often the biggest party leader, are given 28 days, with the possibility of an extension of two weeks, to form the government.
2 years, 4 elections
After winning his fourth term in 2015, Netanyahu from the Likud Right Wing Party was able to collect the ruling coalition during eleven hours. But he was forced to dissolve parliament and held a SNAP election in April 2019, after the resignation of his defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, leader of the Secular Secular Nationalist Party Yisrael Beiteinu.
Netanyahu, however, could not secure seats to form a government, and other elections were followed in September 2019. But again, both Netanyahu and his rival Benny Gantz from the Blue and White Party could not form the government.
In the Israeli system, the only way to break the deadlock is to continue to hold elections until someone gets the majority, so the third election is held in March 2020 – which once again, is not convincing.
In April 2020, Netanyahu was able to form a “emergency” coalition government with his main rival Gantz. This weak alliance will only last seven months; In December, the fragmented ruling coalition could not pass the budget in Knesset, triggered the fourth election in March 2021.
New coalition
Netanyahu, who remained the Caretaker Prime Minister throughout this period, finally lost power after 12 years in June 2021, when Knesset approved Bennett as the new prime minister. Lapid will replace him in two years, based on a coalition agreement.
Coalition eight parties including left -wing and right wing parties, and secular and religious groups. For the first time, an Arab party, Arab list or Ra’am, entered government. These parties have very little similarity; What basically unites them is the desire to eliminate the netanhayu from power. From almost 1 day 1, critics and commentators estimate that this encouragement will not be enough to unite an extensive alliance.
What is happening right now
When Israel waited for elections – possibly at the end of October due to legal constraints and holiday delays – Netanyahu mentioned the development “good news for millions of Israeli citizens”, and vowed to return to the office as prime minister.
According to this new poll, Likud Netanyahu is likely to be the biggest in the next Knesset. Which remains uncertain – as shown by this new selection – is whether he will be able to collect the ruling coalition. As shown by a report in the New York Times, some parties are likely to want to ally with Likud only if Netanyahu resigned as a party leader. The former prime minister has rejected accusations of fraud, bribery, and violations of trust, which he is currently tried, as “hunting witch”.