Israeli Politicsupdated 1h ago2 min read
Archive photo · 13 April 2016Central Election Commission Says Netanyahu and Gadi Eisenkot Miss Majority in Israel’s 120-Seat Knesset
10 Other5 Western MainstreamPhoto: revi, CC BY 2.0 kr · Cropped for layout
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Final results show no bloc won 61 seats, leaving a Knesset-wide majority unattainable. Netanyahu-led bloc won 53 seats; Eisenkot-led bloc won 48.
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Deadlock after election
Israel’s Central Election Commission announced that neither Netanyahu’s right-religious bloc nor the opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot reached a majority in the 120-seat Knesset, leaving Israel facing difficult government formation. Netanyahu’s bloc gathered 53 seats after counting all votes, while Eisenkot’s opposition bloc won 48, and the Central Election Commission said 61 seats are required for a majority. The kingmaker could now be the Israeli-Arab parties, which secured 19 seats, as Raam and the United List performed significantly better than expected.
President Isaac Herzog will begin talks with the respective party leaders after the final results are officially presented to him on Wednesday, before appointing one of them to form the government. The dispute between the rival blocs intensified as Netanyahu’s right and far-right coalition pushed for investigations into the Israeli-Arab parties over alleged foreign funding.
Accusations and counterclaims
The Likud party said on Thursday, “Voting in Israel was stolen,” and the party framed the dispute as an “attack on democracy” aimed at Islamizing Israel and toppling the right-wing government. Itamar Ben Gvir called for the arrest of the leaders of the Israeli-Arab parties, as allegations centered on claims that Raam had received funds from Qatar to finance vote-buying. Raam leader Mansour Abbas rejected the allegations, and Qatar called them “ridiculous and dangerous.”
Eisenkot accused Netanyahu of seeking to question the election result, saying, “It is already clear that Likud and Netanyahu have launched a coordinated, organized campaign aimed at delegitimizing the results of the election.” Shin Bet confirmed that an investigation is ongoing, while it stressed it is not about “accusing an entire community that voted democratically and legally.”
What happens next
Israel’s political deadlock sets up weeks of jockeying and political uncertainty, with the Central Election Commission’s final results leading to consultations led by President Isaac Herzog. CNN said the president will task one of the leaders with the job of trying to form a government, and it warned that if party leaders cannot figure it out in the 12 weeks available, Israelis will be back at the polls. The BBC described how Netanyahu and Eisenkot both addressed supporters pledging to form the next government, even as analysts warned that the trend could change because mail ballots from Israeli soldiers remained uncounted.
The Jerusalem Post argued that “without new voices and new ideas, the country risks remaining trapped in the same cycle of political instability that produced five elections between 2019 and 2022.” The Times of Israel reported that Eisenkot vowed to advance measures including universal military and national service and a state commission of inquiry into the October 7 massacre, even as he faced uncertain prospects of forming a governing coalition.