Likud Proposes Dissolving Israel’s Parliament for Early Elections Amid Ultra-Orthodox Anger at Netanyahu

Israel’s ruling coalition submitted a proposal to dissolve the country’s parliament, paving the way for early elections, the party of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday, May 13.

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Arab News

Likud’s draft legislation said, "The 25th Knesset shall be dissolved before the end of its term," and that elections would be held on a date determined by the Knesset Committee, which "may not be set earlier than 90 days after the passage of this law."

Lebanon Debate

According to Israeli media reports cited by Le Monde, the dissolution bill could be put to a vote on May 20, and parliamentary elections had originally been scheduled to take place by October 27.

Le Monde reported the move was initiated by Netanyahu’s own Likud party as the prime minister faced the possible collapse of his coalition amid mounting anger from ultra-Orthodox parties.

The ultra-Orthodox parties accuse Netanyahu of failing to deliver on his promise to pass a legislation that would permanently exempt young men studying in yeshivas from compulsory military service.

The Guardian said the dissolution proposal came as Netanyahu appeared to be facing a possible collapse of his fractious coalition under pressure from ultra-Orthodox parties.

The Guardian reported that if the bill is approved it would automatically trigger elections to be held after 90 days, and it quoted the Likud draft saying, "Elections will be held on a date … which may not be set earlier than 90 days after the passage of this law."

Public Sénat

The Guardian said ultra-Orthodox parties accuse Netanyahu of failing to deliver on his promise to pass a law that would permanently exempt young men from their community studying in yeshivas from compulsory military service.

It added that several opposition parties announced on Tuesday they intended to introduce their own bill to dissolve the Knesset, but that Likud’s announcement appeared to have pre-empted the move, allowing Netanyahu to seize control of the electoral timetable.

The Guardian also reported that Israel’s main opposition leader Yair Lapid responded on X with, "We are ready Together," referring to his new alliance, Beyahad (Together), formed with former premier Naftali Bennett.

The Guardian linked the political fight over early elections to the wider context of Israel’s wars, saying Lapid and Bennett have been outspoken critics of Netanyahu’s handling of the country’s wars since the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023.

It reported that Netanyahu pledged to achieve a "total victory" over Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Iran, a goal that the Guardian said remained elusive after more than two and a half years of multifront conflict.

The Guardian said Lapid and Bennett intend to make central campaign themes the establishment of a national inquiry commission into the 7 October attacks, aimed at assigning responsibility for the deadliest day in Israel’s history.

It also reported that Lapid and Bennett intend to pursue legislation to subject ultra-Orthodox Jews to compulsory military service.

The Guardian further said a political poll by Israel’s public broadcaster Kan published on Tuesday put Likud in first place in voting intentions, with a narrow lead over Beyahad, and that Likud would win 26 seats out of 120 in the Knesset while Beyahad would secure 25.