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Prime Minister Netanyahu in front of the blue and white Israeli flag.
BY SOPHIE SOLOWAY ’23
Israel held its second general election in five months on Tuesday, Sept. 17. The last general election was scheduled for this past April, but the outcome was too close to call. Once again ending in a stalemate, it seems that Israel’s longest running prime minister will have to make some desperate attempts to not only continue his role, but also to resist serious criminal charges placed against him.
Netanyahu faces “potential charges of fraud, bribery and breach of trust,” according to the Washington Post.
“Analysts say this possibility is what prompted the prime minister to call for early elections in December,’’ reported the Washington Post.
However, those close to the Attorney General, as well as political analysts worldwide, have made it clear that Netanyahu could still face charges while in office. This would make him the first Israeli prime minister to stand trial while holding the role.
Even before these allegations came to light, the prime minister was fighting a battle to regain support in Israel as well as with Jewish communities worldwide.
Hannah Raykher ’23, an active member of the Jewish community on campus, said, “I support the idea of a Jewish state but I do not support the current Israeli government because Netanyahu does not really do what the general Israeli people want.”
Less than a week after the election, the results are still under scrutiny. Netanyahu’s centrist opponent, Benny Gantz, won a slight majority, but it will not be enough to grant his Blue and White party control.
Instead, according to Al Jazeera, the winning party’s leader is given the power to form the new government. This is only possible when multiple parties form a coalition. Because of this, the leader of the winning party is not necessarily the prime minister; in order to be reelected, Netanyahu and Gantz each must work to gain the support of possible allies.
In Israel’s government, this is weird. The country’s history is filled with unity leaderships that required multiple political parties to compromise to form a government. However, few in the current race are willing to perform the necessary compromises for such a government to exist.
According to the BBC, “Mr. Netanyahu says his usual far-right and religious coalition allies must be in government, while Mr. Gantz’s party is making any deal with Likud conditional on Mr. Netanyahu being replaced as party leader.”
There is no clear answer as to when decisions will be finalized, and analysts seem to have a wide array of opinions on what such decisions might be.
These decisions, however, are critical to countless global conflicts and their individual ends. From Netanyahu and President Trump’s tight-knit political relationship, to various sweeping statements about plans to further displace Palestinian citizens to control over one of the world’s most powerful militaries, Israeli leadership will have resounding impacts across the globe.