Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu Chosen by President Rivlin to Form New Government

Israel’s electoral process is quite different from ours in the U.S.A. A second election was held on September 17th. The outcome was that the Likud Party, headed by current Prime Minister Netanyahu, had 32 seats in Parliament yet his closest competitor, Benny Gantz of the Blue & White Party, received 33 seats. Even though that looked like the clear winner would have been Gantz, it really doesn’t work that way. The standing president (currently Reuven Rivlin) has the opportunity to make a decision to choose one candidate - or the two groups may form a national unity government. The president chose first to seek a unity government, but that attempt failed. Most everyone in Israel had hoped for that.

President Rivlin then had the responsibility to choose the candidate he believes will have the best chance of forming a coalition government. Today President Rivlin chose Netanyahu to form a new government. Netanyahu was unable to form a coalition after he won the last election but now has a second opportunity to do so. Israeli law gives the president’s first choice up to six weeks to form a coalition. If Netanyahu is unable to form this majority coalition in the Knesset, then likely Gantz will have a crack at it. If he is also unsuccessful, a third name could be considered. If that person fails, an unprecedented third election would be held in less than one year.

According to World Israel News, the move came after Rivlin summoned the leaders of the country’s two largest parties to his residence for a second time in a stepped-up effort to break the post-election political deadlock paralyzing the nation.

Please pray that Netanyahu will be able to form the coalition. It is unsettling not to have leadership in agreement and Israel appears to be divided between conservative and liberal, similar to the dilemma we have here in the U.S.A.