Elections in Israel: Uncertainty about the new government

The Knesset election took place in Israel on Tuesday. The camps around Netanyahu and Eisenkot were unable to gain a majority and now have to look for coalitions. For Palestinians, expulsion and genocide remain part of everyday life.

A new Knesset was elected in Israel on Tuesday. The counting of votes is still taking place, but the first results can still be seen. Both camps – that around Prime Minister and Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as the opposition camp around ex-military chief Gadi Eisenkot – do not achieve a majority. At around 72 percentvotes counted(As of 9:00 a.m.), Netanyahu's Likud party won 27 seats in the election. Eisenkot's Jashar party, on the other hand, has 21 seats.

Even in alliance with the other parties in the respective camps, there is still not enough for a majority for both. The fascist camp around Netanyahu - which also includes Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich's parties - achieved 54 seats. In contrast, the opposition bloc currently receives 48 seats in the Knesset. This means that both camps do not achieve the majority of 61 seats necessary for a government.

Contrary to previously expected, the two Arab parties have experienced major growth. The Islamic-oriented Ra'am Party is expected to win six seats and the more secular and partly left-wing Joint List will have a total of twelve seats. With this result, they will now have a significantly greater role, as they could be decisive for the composition of the government coalition.

Escalation before the election: Netanyahu completely seals off the West Bank

Election results point to coalition poker

The two central candidates in this election – Benjamin Netanyahu and Gadi Eisenkot – now have to deal with how they can get approval from the opposing camps in order to be able to put together a governing coalition.

There is a particular opportunity for the opposition to gain support from the Arab parties. However, there are some hurdles here. There are some negative positions towards joint work from both the Eisenkot camp and the Arab parties.

Particularly in the camp of the Arab parties, the fundamental question arises to what extent, but above all whether, one would participate in a government coalition. The Ra'am Party recognizes this as an option and has already taken part in a coalition in the past, in 2021. However, the combined list refuses to participate. They do not want to participate in maintaining the system that is responsible for Israel's oppression of Palestinians.

However, there are few options other than new elections, as Netanyahu's bloc also clearly rejects cooperation with Arab parties. There would still be the possibility of a minority government of the opposition, which would be tolerated by the Arab parties. AlsoRumorsPossible collaboration between the two opposing camps has emerged in recent days.

Both sides declare election victory

Despite the unclear situation so far, both leading party blocs declared themselves the winners of the elections on Tuesday evening. The opposition bloc primarily points to the fact that the parties surrounding Netanyahu were unable to achieve an absolute majority.

Opposition leaderJair Lapidsaid, according to his office: “Don’t let anyone confuse you: the Netanyahu bloc has suffered a crushing defeat.” Furthermore explainedIron droppings, he will now “work immediately to implement the will of the voters, replace the Netanyahu government and form a Zionist government committed to conscription for all as quickly as possible.”

NetanyahuOn the other hand, he also refers positively to the election results, according to which his party is “the largest party in Israel”. “We need a strong, right-wing, nationalist government,” the Prime Minister continued.

Israel votes – Palestinians are left out

Regardless of the outcome: genocide and expulsion remain part of everyday life

Even if the race for the next Knesset is more dramatic than it has been for a long time, the election result remains of little relevance to millions of Palestinians. Regardless of whether Netanyahu or Eisenkot ultimately become Prime Minister of Israel, genocide and expulsion remain on the agenda for the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip and West Bank.

If the Jashar party ends up forming the government, it could at most ease the situation for the Palestinians a little. Eisenkot is also a supporter of the West Bank settlement project and an opponent of a two-state solution, although he is committed to curbing settlement violence. However, he does not want to change anything about the fact that the attacks on Gaza, the settlement project in the West Bank and the general oppression of the Palestinians continue.

Netanyahu's bloc, on the other hand, includes, among other thingsItamar Ben-Gvir, who most recently made a name for himself by saying that “30 to 40 people a night” should be killed in the Gaza Strip. AlsoBezalel Smotrich, perhaps the biggest supporter of illegal Israeli settlement construction, is part of the alliance. If this bloc were to come to power again, it would likely mean an acceleration of settlement construction that violates international law, as well as even deadlier treatment of the residents of Gaza.

For Palestinians, this election is primarily about the pace of their expulsion and murder. However, both competing camps agree on the basic Zionist idea.

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