Will Benny Gantz be the new Prime Minister…? Israeli politics turns pretty much interesting!

Jerusalem, October 22: Politics in Israel has turned into a pretty interesting game. In the wake of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s inability to form a government ahead of this week’s deadline, President Reuven Rivlin today passed the mandate onto Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz. Now world is curious to see exactly who will be the leader of this strategically sensitive country!

 

To form a government, a majority of 61 seats in Israel’s 120-seat parliament is needed, a result that seems unlikely either party can achieve without the assistance of the other. Benny Gantz today said in a statement that he is optimistic he will be able to form a coalition within 28 days. The Blue and White Party has expressed its interest in building a liberal unity government, led by Gantz, saying in a statement yesterday that ‘the time for spin is over’.

 

Former justice minister Ayelet Shaked has said that while her New Right Party would be willing to meet with Gantz if invited to do so, it would be a waste of time as the New Right would not negotiate independently from the right-wing bloc. She called on Gantz to negotiate with a representative of the bloc, saying that a third election would be ‘unnecessary and harmful’. Likud and Blue and White have each accused the other of pushing the country towards a third election.

Netanyahu has been in power for the past decade. He was running a coalition government since April elections this year. Elections were due in November this year but were brought forward in September following disputes between members of the current government. However, September's elections also failed to produce a clear winner.

“I made every effort to bring Benny Gantz to the negotiating table. Every effort to establish a broad national unity government, every effort to prevent another election. Unfortunately, time after time, he declined. He simply refused,” Said Netanyahu. 

 

Rivlin has encouraged a unity government, which would be equally divided between Netanyahu and Gantz, each serving two years as prime minister. If Netanyahu is indicted in any of the three corruption cases he currently faces, he would take a leave of absence, and Gantz would become ‘interim prime minister’ during that time.

If Gantz is unable to put together a government in the 28 days following the beginning of his mandate, there will then be a three-week period in which any Knesset member will be able to attempt to do so. If no government is formed during that time, a third election will be automatically initiated.