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Israeli President Picks Eisenkot Over Netanyahu to Form New Government
· Confirmed
In Short: Israeli President Isaac Herzog has chosen opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to form the next government, potentially ending Benjamin Netanyahu's long tenure.
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Eisenkot quickly targets Netanyahu's legacy in new Israeli parliament • FRANCE 24 English. FRANCE 24 English
Israeli President Isaac Herzog announced Saturday that he has chosen opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to form the country's next government, handing Netanyahu's chief rival the first opportunity to build a coalition following an inconclusive national election.
Following two days of consultations with Israel’s newly elected parliament, Herzog announced Thursday that factions representing 67 of the Knesset’s 120 members had recommended Eisenkot, chairman of the Yashar party, to form the next government.
Netanyahu received the backing of 46 lawmakers, while seven members of the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party declined to endorse either candidate.
The formal presentation of the mandate is scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 12, marking a significant step toward ending Netanyahu’s tenure.
The decision could mark a significant step toward ending Netanyahu’s tenure, but it would also launch a difficult round of coalition negotiations, with deep disagreements among parties seeking to replace him.
In a statement posted on X, Lieberman argued that preventing another election and ending Netanyahu’s time in office would require difficult political compromises.
Eisenkot’s four-party alliance won 48 seats in the October 27 elections, while Netanyahu’s right-wing and religious bloc secured 53, leaving both short of the 61 needed for a parliamentary majority.
Eisenkot accused Netanyahu of running an orchestrated campaign to delegitimize the election results, while Balad chairman Sami Abu Shehadeh dismissed the allegations as a racist blood libel.
Netanyahu’s coalition—made up of his own Likud party and the ultra-Orthodox and far-right parties—takes around 52 seats, with no partners willing to help close the gap.
Neither Eisenkot nor Netanyahu has publicly said they would partner with the predominantly Arab lists, which represent some 21 percent of Israel's population and who could become kingmakers if the results are as close as expected.
What this adds
Complex coalition negotiations lie ahead, but it marks a significant step in Eisenkot's effort to oust Netanyahu after neither bloc emerged from the October 27 parliamentary elections with a majority.
Background
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has chosen opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to form the next government, potentially ending Benjamin Netanyahu's long tenure.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has chosen Gadi Eisenkot to form a new government, a move that could end Benjamin Netanyahu's long tenure as prime minister.
What's confirmed
- Israeli President Isaac Herzog announced Saturday that he has chosen opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to form the country's next government, handing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's chief rival the first opportunity to build a coalition following an inconclusive national election.
- Thousands of Israelis gathered in Tel Aviv on Saturday to protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and demand an independent inquiry into the security failures that led to the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023.
What's still developing
- Humanitarian catastrophe largely ignored as rivals Gadi Eisenkot and Benjamin Netanyahu vow to end Hamas rule Humanitarian catastrophe largely ignored as rivals Gadi Eisenkot and Benjamin Netanyahu vow to end Hamas rule As Israel prepares to go to the polls, Palestinians in Gaza are bracing for an outcome that could shape their future, knowing their fate rests with the country that has reduced much of the territory to rubble and killed nearly 75,000 people.
- With a week to go before a closely fought election, it seems Netanyahu is treading lightly on the settler attacks in order to avoid alienating political allies whose support he will need after the ballots are counted.
- Yet instead of coming out unequivocally against the attacks, and using Israel’s world-class security services to identify and arrest the estimated few hundred core perpetrators, Netanyahu has chosen a different path.
- Netanyahu’s chief rival, Gadi Eisenkot, attended the rally that was an echo of the weekly ones once held to call for the release of hostages taken into Gaza.
- Israelis held a final large rally against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of what has been described as the most consequential election in the country’s history.
- The flight was carrying at least 150 people, with Netanyahu saying "almost all" passengers were Israeli.
- US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during an unannounced visit to Israel, amid discussions between Washington and Tel Aviv about potentially resuming major combat operations against Iran, Axios reported, citing two sources familiar with the meeting.
- No clear winner in Israeli election but Netanyahu looks far from defeated.
- When Israelis awoke on Wednesday, it seemed that their future had taken another twist overnight: Results that had looked like a narrow loss for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when they went to bed now pointed to a narrow lead by dawn.
- But this turn of events is more than a legal dispute: it also reveals Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s broader campaign strategy for the elections, given that he is unlikely to win an outright majority.
- Netanyahu, first elected in 1996 and prime minister for 20 of the last 30 years, faces his toughest election yet.