That arithmetic gives Arab-led parties a potentially decisive role.
Israel's opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot has been given the opportunity to form a new government after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's ruling coalition lost its parliamentary majority in October's elections, according to Al Jazeera. President Isaac Herzog selected the former military chief on Saturday following consultations with political parties. Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar party, now has 28 days to assemble a coalition, with the option of a 14-day extension should he fall short.
The numbers explain the difficulty. Neither Eisenkot nor Netanyahu commands a 61-seat majority in the 120-member Knesset. Eisenkot's prospective bloc — his Yashar party, Yair Golan's centre-left Democrats, Naftali Bennett's centre-right Together and Avigdor Lieberman's right-wing Yisrael Beiteinu — controls 48 seats, well short of the threshold. Netanyahu's religious-nationalist coalition has fallen from 64 seats in 2022 to 53, with Likud remaining the largest single party on 27 seats against Yashar's 21.
That arithmetic gives Arab-led parties a potentially decisive role. Ra'am and the Joint List, holding 19 seats between them, have endorsed Eisenkot's attempt to form a government, which would give the broader anti-Netanyahu camp 67 seats. But Eisenkot has ruled out bringing Arab parties into his government, and Lieberman has repeatedly rejected a minority administration dependent on their support. Only Golan's Democrats have shown willingness to partner with them. "We must no longer accept Netanyahu's racist division between Jewish votes and Arab votes," Golan said after the election, according to the report.
Two further paths remain. Eisenkot could lead a minority government with his four-party bloc relying on external parliamentary support from Ra'am and the Joint List, which would not necessarily receive cabinet posts but could negotiate policy concessions. Alternatively, he could bring the ultra-Orthodox parties Shas and United Torah Judaism, holding 13 seats, into his coalition to reach exactly 61 — though that would require compromise over military conscription exemptions, an issue Eisenkot and Lieberman have criticised. Lieberman has recently indicated openness to compromise; Shas backed Netanyahu during consultations, while United Torah Judaism declined to endorse any candidate.
A unity government involving Yashar, Together, Yisrael Beiteinu and Likud would command 67 seats, but would require Eisenkot and his partners to abandon their central election pledge to remove Netanyahu from power. Should Eisenkot fail, Herzog could invite Netanyahu to try; if both fail, parliament could nominate another candidate, and a process lasting 100 days without a government could send Israelis back to the polls.
What is not yet known is whether Eisenkot can reconcile parties whose positions on national security, religion and the occupation of Palestinian territory diverge sharply. The negotiations will determine not only who becomes prime minister but which parties control key ministries shaping policy on the economy, conscription and the occupied Palestinian territory. Several members of the opposition bloc have held senior office before, including in the coalition that removed Netanyahu in 2021 — Bennett served as prime minister from 2021 to 2022 and has long opposed Palestinian statehood, while Lieberman has held the finance and defence portfolios. The source does not specify the precise terms any of these parties would demand, nor whether the Arab-led parties would accept external support without cabinet representation.
