• Analysis
Israel coalition government: Herzog to decide Sunday between Netanyahu and Eisenkot
President Isaac Herzog will announce on Sunday who gets the first attempt at forming an Israel coalition government, with Gadi Eisenkot holding 67 endorsements to Benjamin Netanyahu's 46 - a decision that follows the Central Election Committee's Wednesday finding that the election's integrity had not been compromised.
Election officials reject fraud claims
Benjamin Netanyahu has seized on an investigation by election officials into possible vote tampering to cast doubt on the results, accusing Israeli Palestinian-led parties of stealing the vote. He denies undermining the results.
Israel's Central Election Committee said on Wednesday that the election's integrity had not been compromised. Committee head, supreme court justice Noam Sohlberg, called on elected officials to protect public trust and told President Isaac Herzog:
This is a real danger. One of the foundations of democracy is the peaceful transfer of power.
Sohlberg also said high voter turnout, including among the Arab minority, was a blessing.
Sunday decision after endorsements
Herzog said on Thursday he would decide on Sunday which of Netanyahu or Gadi Eisenkot should first try to form an Israel coalition government. In Israel's system, the largely ceremonial president picks which candidate has the best initial chance of building a stable coalition.
The endorsements so far:
- •Eisenkot: 67 of 120 Knesset lawmakers
- •Netanyahu: 46
Herzog said mutual vetoes between the blocs, and within the blocs themselves, make it hard to say who can form a government. He plans personal talks with some party leaders over the Israeli weekend, which runs Friday to Saturday.
Netanyahu stays on as caretaker
Last month's bitterly contested election ended with neither Netanyahu nor Eisenkot securing a clear path to power. Netanyahu's Likud won the most seats, but his nationalist-religious coalition, the most rightwing in Israel's history, lost its governing majority, dropping from 68 to 53 seats in the 120-seat Knesset. Eisenkot's Change bloc of Zionist parties holds 48 seats.
Netanyahu, who is 77, remains prime minister in a caretaker government until a new coalition is formed or another election is held. A new election is mandatory if no candidate succeeds.
Calls to avert another election
Herzog, who met delegations from Palestinian Israeli and other small parties, has called on all sides to help avert another round of elections.
Any reasonable person need only look at the security and diplomatic challenges before us, at the changing region around us.
Meanwhile, far-right allies of Netanyahu, including Itamar Ben-Gvir, have called for the immediate arrest and interrogation of Arab party leaders.
On Sunday, Herzog will announce which candidate gets the first attempt at coalition talks; Netanyahu stays on as caretaker prime minister until a coalition is formed or a new election is called.
