The leader of Israel’s Democrats party has called on the opposition to form a government with the country’s two Arab-led parties, arguing that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lost the October 27 election. Yair Golan said the arithmetic of the 120-seat Knesset left the Prime Minister without a route back to power.
With about 84 per cent of ballots counted on October 28, partial results from the Central Elections Committee gave Netanyahu’s bloc 54 seats and the rival camp led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot 49. The two Arab-led parties, the Joint List and Ra’am, held 17 between them, their strongest showing to date.
Likud remained the largest single party with 27 seats, though the Prime Minister’s bloc finished seven short of the 61 required for a majority. Neither camp can reach that figure without the Arab parties, which have supported a government only once, when Ra’am joined the coalition formed in 2021.
Golan, whose party won eight seats, said the opposition had both a responsibility and an opportunity to build a government of change in cooperation with Arab citizens of Israel. He described Netanyahu’s distinction between Jewish and Arab votes as racist and insisted that every ballot carried the same weight.
He also rejected the Prime Minister’s claim to a “Zionist majority”, pointing out that the governing bloc relies on ultra-Orthodox parties that are not Zionist and that defend mass exemption from military service. By Golan’s count, the opposition held a Zionist majority of 49 to 39.
Netanyahu said his camp had won a decisive majority among Zionist voters and that he would form a national right-wing government. He ruled out any arrangement with the Arab parties, which he called anti-Semitic and enemies of the State.
The result is being watched closely in the European Union, where capitals have spent months deadlocked over whether to sanction national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. He accused Netanyahu in October of privately assuring European governments that he would not sit in the next cabinet.
Relations with Brussels frayed further during the campaign, after masked settlers attacked a convoy of European diplomats in the West Bank. US President Donald Trump also intervened days before the vote, endorsing Netanyahu and warning Israelis against choosing the wrong leader.
Counting is continuing and the final tally is expected in the coming days. Israel’s president will then ask the party leader with the best chance of commanding a majority to try to form a government.
