Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Israeli Parliament Starts Dissolving Itself for 3rd Election
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
December 11, 2019

Share

JERUSALEM — The Israeli parliament began voting to dissolve itself on Wednesday and pave the path to an unprecedented third election within a year. The preliminary vote passed without objections. Barring a nearly unfathomable about-face, three more measures are expected to pass and call a new election for March 2, 2020.
If the bill isn’t passed by a midnight deadline, new elections would automatically be set for March 10.
The move prolongs a political stalemate that has paralyzed the government and undermined many citizens’ faith in the democratic process.
Both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his chief challenger Benny Gantz have for weeks insisted they want to avoid another costly election campaign that is expected to produce similar results. But neither has been willing to compromise on their core demands for a power-sharing agreement. Netanyahu’s recent indictment on corruption charges has added a murky legal imbroglio to the saga.
Following September elections, both men failed during their officially mandated time to form a governing coalition on their own. Then, in a final three-week window, they could not join forces to avoid another vote.
Both sides said they were working until the last minute to find some way out of the deadlock. However, a breakthrough seemed highly unlikely.
Given Israel’s divided state, and the deep mistrust between the opposing camps, there is no guarantee that another vote will break the loop of elections and instability that has rocked the country for the past year.

The Most Straightforward Way out of the Stalemate

Another campaign, and the national holiday of Election Day, will cost the Israeli economy billions.
But there will be an even steeper price caused by nearly 18 months of caretaker governments that cannot carry out major legislation, make appointments or pass budgets, said Yohanan Plesner, president of the non-partisan Israel Democracy Institute.

“The entire decision-making apparatus has been stalled and that has ample implications across the board. Israelis are frustrated as a result of the fact that there is no decisive outcome. But there is also an understanding that we are in a very unique and unprecedented situation where a prime minister who is very popular within his own constituency is also being indicted with very severe crimes.” — Yohanan Plesner, president of the non-partisan Israel Democracy Institute
“The entire decision-making apparatus has been stalled and that has ample implications across the board,” he said. “Israelis are frustrated as a result of the fact that there is no decisive outcome. But there is also an understanding that we are in a very unique and unprecedented situation where a prime minister who is very popular within his own constituency is also being indicted with very severe crimes.”
The most straightforward way out of the stalemate would be for Gantz’s centrist Blue and White party to form a unity government with Netanyahu’s Likud. Together, they control a solid majority in the 120-seat Knesset.
But Gantz’s party refuses to sit with Netanyahu, who was indicted last month on charges of accepting bribes, fraud and breach of trust. Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-ever serving leader, is desperately clinging to power to wage his legal battle from the favorable perch of prime minister. He has insisted on going first in any alternating leadership arrangement and has refused to drop his alliance with other nationalist and ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties.
Gantz has said he would make a deal with a different leader of Likud. But Netanyahu has so far managed to fend off a burgeoning insurrection inside his party, with just one major figure, Gideon Saar, daring to openly challenge him.
Photo of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attending a faction meeting
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, centre, attends in an extended faction meeting of the right-wing bloc members at the Knesset, in Jerusalem Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2019. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Opinion Polls Have Forecast a Similar Deadlock if New Elections Are Held

“If I am elected head of Likud, I will lead it to victory,” Saar announced Tuesday, citing polls that he was more likely to be able to build a stable coalition. “It is very clear, on the other hand, that if we keep the current course we will not get anywhere better than we have in the last two elections.”
With all the other top Likud officials lining up behind him, Netanyahu is expected to beat Saar in any primary vote. The Likud announced Wednesday that it would hold its leadership vote on Dec. 26.
Netanyahu is not legally compelled to step down after being indicted, but Israeli law is fuzzy about whether he could be given authority to form a new government after the next election. Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, who was harshly criticized by both sides throughout the lengthy process he took to press charges, will now be required to rule on that question as well before a likely court challenge.
Recent opinion polls have forecast a similar deadlock if new elections are held.
Hard-liner Avigdor Lieberman, a former Netanyahu ally, has emerged as a stubborn kingmaker, refusing to endorse either candidate while failing to coax them into a unity government.
The maverick politician, who takes a hard line against the Palestinians, has earned some newfound support in liberal circles by also taking a tough stand against ultra-Orthodox parties that hold great influence in Netanyahu’s governments. But he’s also taken lots of heat for the extended impasse.
“Voting for Lieberman is a sure path to a fourth election,” wrote Matti Tuchfeld in the Israel Hayom daily. “Lieberman has turned into a one-man blocking majority. You can like him, agree with his opinions, you can love his zigzagging. No problem. But you have to know that a vote for him is a vote for continuing the political vacuum and a perpetual transition government.”
[activecampaign form=29]

DON'T MISS

Trump Admin Cuts Billions in Biomedical Health Research Funding

DON'T MISS

Here’s What We Know About a Commuter Plane Crash in Alaska That Killed 10 People

DON'T MISS

Trump’s 3rd Week: More Executive Orders, a Trade War That Wasn’t, and a Mideast Jolt

DON'T MISS

UMass Will Pay Student Who Made Half-Court Shot $10,000 Even Though His Foot Was on Line

DON'T MISS

Trump Is Signing Up Local Law Officers to Help With Immigration Enforcement

DON'T MISS

Judge Blocks Trump From Placing Thousands of USAID Workers on Leave

DON'T MISS

Federal Judge Blocks Musk’s DOGE From Accessing Sensitive Treasury Department Data

DON'T MISS

Rookies for Eagles and Chiefs Could Play a Key Role in the Super Bowl

DON'T MISS

Sony PlayStation Network Outage Enrages Gamers Around the World

DON'T MISS

Trump Says He’s Firing Kennedy Center Board Members, Naming Himself Chairman

UP NEXT

State Department Lays out Plans for $7 Billion-Plus Arms Sale to Israel

UP NEXT

Alaska Legislature Asks Trump to Retain Denali’s Name

UP NEXT

Flu Season in the US Is the Most Intense It’s Been in at Least 15 Years

UP NEXT

Search Underway Along Alaska’s Western Coast for Plane Carrying 10 People

UP NEXT

What Is the International Criminal Court and How Will Trump’s Sanctions Impact It?

UP NEXT

Palestinians Face Heartbreak and Devastation as They Return to Destroyed Gaza Homes

UP NEXT

UK Demands Apple Create Backdoor to Encrypted User Data

UP NEXT

Israel Starts Planning for Palestinians to Leave Gaza Despite International Rejection

UP NEXT

Rubio Strikes Deal With Guatemala to Accept Deported US Migrants

UP NEXT

FBI Agents Who ‘Simply Followed Orders’ in Jan. 6 Probes Won’t Be Fired, a Justice Official Says

UMass Will Pay Student Who Made Half-Court Shot $10,000 Even Though His Foot Was on Line

8 hours ago

Trump Is Signing Up Local Law Officers to Help With Immigration Enforcement

8 hours ago

Judge Blocks Trump From Placing Thousands of USAID Workers on Leave

8 hours ago

Federal Judge Blocks Musk’s DOGE From Accessing Sensitive Treasury Department Data

8 hours ago

Rookies for Eagles and Chiefs Could Play a Key Role in the Super Bowl

9 hours ago

Sony PlayStation Network Outage Enrages Gamers Around the World

9 hours ago

Trump Says He’s Firing Kennedy Center Board Members, Naming Himself Chairman

9 hours ago

PJ Pickles, the Pajama-Clad Pup, Want to Join Your Loving Home

9 hours ago

Newsom Signs $50M Plan to Battle Trump Policies, Support Immigrants

1 day ago

Fresno Students Entering the Work World Need Your Help to ‘Dress the Part’

1 day ago

Trump Admin Cuts Billions in Biomedical Health Research Funding

The Trump administration has announced a drastic cut in biomedical research funding, slashing billions of dollars from the National Institut...

1 hour ago

1 hour ago

Trump Admin Cuts Billions in Biomedical Health Research Funding

6 hours ago

Here’s What We Know About a Commuter Plane Crash in Alaska That Killed 10 People

7 hours ago

Trump’s 3rd Week: More Executive Orders, a Trade War That Wasn’t, and a Mideast Jolt

8 hours ago

UMass Will Pay Student Who Made Half-Court Shot $10,000 Even Though His Foot Was on Line

8 hours ago

Trump Is Signing Up Local Law Officers to Help With Immigration Enforcement

8 hours ago

Judge Blocks Trump From Placing Thousands of USAID Workers on Leave

8 hours ago

Federal Judge Blocks Musk’s DOGE From Accessing Sensitive Treasury Department Data

9 hours ago

Rookies for Eagles and Chiefs Could Play a Key Role in the Super Bowl

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend