Israeli party leaders were holding discussions with President Isaac Herzog on Thursday about who should get the first chance to form a governing coalition.
The Israeli leader and his allies are alleging that Arab voters last month stole the election. Election officials say that while foul play was being investigated, it could not have affected the result.
President Isaac Herzog has tried to avoid controversy and heal rifts in his largely ceremonial role. But his skills as a savvy mediator could be instrumental after an inconclusive election.
The president’s announcement on Election Day, which he said was part of an agreement reached months ago, was a sign of how quickly the politics surrounding Israel have shifted.
Party leaders will make competing cases to the Israeli president for either Benjamin Netanyahu or Gadi Eisenkot to get the first chance to build a governing coalition.
After losing ground in Israel’s election, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu must draw on decades of political capital and reckon with old foes if he is to build a governing coalition.
Having won a record 19 seats in Israel’s Parliament, the two Arab-led parties say they want to work with opposition factions to take down the Netanyahu government.
With Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fighting to stay in power and President Trump facing a tough midterm, Iran’s leaders expect no major shift in policy.
The leading contenders, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Gadi Eisenkot, aren’t substantially different in their approach to Israel’s security or in their opposition to a Palestinian state.
Campaign posters for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Likud party, and Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar party, in Hadera, Israel, on Tuesday.
Gains for Arab-led parties have electrified Taibe, in central Israel, even as voters elsewhere in Israel say they have no place in any future government.
Ahmad Tibi, a leader of the Joint List party, with supporters on Tuesday outside a polling station in Taibe, Israel, a predominantly Arab town. “We’re ready to swallow frogs to take down Netanyahu’s government,” he said.
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