Two weeks after Israel’s fourth consecutive election, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin on Monday gave the mandate to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to form a new government.
Why does it matter: Netanyahu’s path to forming a coalition is very, very narrow. Although he received the mandate from the president, Netanyahu does not currently have a majority in the Israeli Knesset that will allow him to form a new government.
Leading the news: Rivlin announced his decision after months of consultations with members of all parties.
- During the consultations, 52 members of the Knesset recommended Netanyahu to form the government, while 45 recommended the leader of the opposition, Yair Lapid.
- Seven members of the Knesset recommended the leader of the right-wing Yemina party, Naftali Bennett, and 16 members did not recommend any candidate.
Between the lines: Under Israeli law, the president must give the mandate to a member of the Knesset who has the best chance of forming a government.
- Rivlin said in a statement that his conclusions after the consultations were that neither Netanyahu nor Lapid have a majority to form a government, but that Netanyahu’s chances of success are “slightly better.”
The whole picture: Israel has been in a political and legal crisis for the past two years, following Netanyahu’s accusations and the ongoing corruption trial.
- The fact that Netanyahu remained prime minister despite his trial has created an unprecedented series of situations that have led to a total dysfunction of the government.
- Rivlin was under pressure from the public not to give Netanyahu a warrant because of his ongoing trial.
- Rivlin said he faced moral difficulty in his decision to touch Netanyahu, but stressed that the law does not prohibit a member of the Knesset who is on trial from receiving a mandate to form a government.
What’s next: Netanyahu now has 28 days to try to form a government.
- His only way to form such a government is if he succeeds in convincing the radical right-wing “religious Zionism” party, which consists of supreme Jews and Islamophobes, to stand together in the same coalition with the Islamic party – a branch of the Muslim Brotherhood Movement.
- If Netanyahu fails to form a government, the Knesset will have 21 days to try to form an alternative coalition. If it fails to do so, Israel will run in the fifth election in September.