Israeli President Isaac Herzog has tasked former Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot with forming a new government. Herzog issued the mandate at his residence in Jerusalem. Eisenkot thereby becomes the candidate for the office of Prime Minister, even though his party Yashar only came second in the election.
The strongest force was Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud with 27 seats. Yashar won 21 seats. Of the 120 members of the Knesset, 67 recommended Eisenkot for forming the government. However, such a recommendation does not guarantee a coalition. Eisenkot now has 28 days to organize a majority. This deadline can be extended by a further 14 days. If he fails, the mandate could go back to Netanyahu, whose Likud received the most votes. The constellation shows how narrow the majority situation is and how strong the bargaining position of the smaller parties is.
Netanyahu had previously called for a government of national unity and warned against dependence on Arab parties. Eisenkot described this appeal as a cheap PR stunt. Instead, he plans a national emergency government, whose work is to be based on four basic principles: a Jewish and democratic state, universal conscription, and the dismantling of Hamas. With this program, Eisenkot is trying to appeal to parties beyond his own political camp, even though the details of such a coalition remain open.
Arithmetically, Eisenkot faces a difficult task. The opposition camp holds 48 seats, 13 fewer than needed for a majority. The Arab parties Joint List and Ra'am together have 19 seats. However, there are strong reservations in the opposition camp about cooperating with them, so this path remains politically delicate.
The ultra-Orthodox parties UTJ and Shas together hold 13 seats. Shas had recommended Netanyahu, while UTJ made no recommendation. Shas at the same time rejects any participation in a government under Eisenkot. Reportedly, Avigdor Lieberman is open to an alliance with the ultra-Orthodox, which further complicates the negotiations.
The dispute over military service and exemptions for ultra-Orthodox men is considered a central point of conflict in the coalition talks. A grand coalition with Likud is, as things stand, conceivable only without Netanyahu. It remains uncertain whether a leadership change within Likud would even be possible. The further course of government formation therefore depends on decisions that still have to be made both in the opposition camp and in the governing party.