Eisenkot Gets First Shot at Forming Israel's Next Government

Israel's newly elected Knesset was sworn in Monday, and opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot has 28 days, with a possible two-week extension, to assemble a government that could remove caretaker Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from office, according to BBC News.

Who gets the first chance to form a government?

Under the process described by the BBC, President Isaac Herzog tasks whichever party leader receives the most recommendations from sitting members of Knesset with trying to build a coalition. Eisenkot, a former army chief who leads the centrist Yashar party, received more recommendations than Netanyahu and was formally given the mandate by Herzog on Sunday. Netanyahu remains caretaker prime minister while that process plays out, a stretch the BBC says could run from days to months.

What is the seat math behind the mandate?

Neither bloc crossed the 61-seat threshold needed for a majority in the 120-seat Knesset. Eisenkot's four-party bloc won 48 seats in October's election; Netanyahu's bloc won 53, per the BBC's reporting. The BBC notes that not every lawmaker who recommended Eisenkot for the mandate is willing to actually sit in a government together, meaning the recommendation count overstates his working majority.

What role could Arab-led parties play?

Israel's two Arab-led alliances, the United Arab List and the Joint List, won a combined 19 seats, an unprecedented total the BBC attributes to a surge in Arab voter turnout. Those seats could decide which bloc reaches 61, but the path is contested on both sides: Netanyahu has ruled out governing with Arab parties, and three parties inside Eisenkot's own bloc have also opposed including them in a coalition.

What did Eisenkot propose as his coalition terms?

Speaking at Herzog's residence, Eisenkot called for a "national emergency government" that would require, in his words, "creative and unconventional political steps." He said any party or MK willing to accept four conditions could join: recognizing Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, accepting the values of the Declaration of Independence, backing mandatory military, national or civilian service for all communities including those currently exempt, and recognizing Hamas as a terrorist organization.

What did Netanyahu and Eisenkot say after being sworn in?

Netanyahu warned lawmakers against a government reliant on Arab-party support, asking, "are you prepared to be dependent on those whose goal is the destruction of the Jewish state?" He also called for a national unity government, citing what he described as the threat of "a nuclear Iran." Eisenkot rejected the framing directly, calling Netanyahu's remarks a "delusional, divisive, hate-filled and shameful speech" and saying he was "now even more convinced that he is unfit to remain in office for even one more minute."

What happens if Eisenkot cannot build a coalition?

The BBC reports the October election was widely seen as a referendum on Netanyahu, and the fractured result leaves open the possibility that no bloc reaches a working majority inside the mandate window. Almost half of the incoming MKs did not serve in the previous Knesset. If Eisenkot's 28-day window, plus any extension, expires without a coalition, the mandate process would move to another candidate, with Netanyahu remaining as caretaker in the meantime.