Israeli president tasks Eisenkot with trying to form government

Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Saturday selected Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief and the strongest rival of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to try to form a new government. The parliamentary election held on October 27 produced no clear winner, leaving neither politician with an obvious path to power.

Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving leader, is trying to keep his post. His religious-nationalist coalition lost its majority but remains the largest bloc in parliament. The opposition bloc led by Eisenkot has refused to team up with Arab parties that could give it a majority. Even so, Arab leaders, angered by what they see as racist policies of Netanyahu and his far-right allies, nominated Eisenkot during lengthy talks with the president. Herzog's spokesperson said Eisenkot would be invited to the President's Residence and tasked with forming a government. The president's role is largely ceremonial and includes nominating a candidate to build a coalition.

Election results

Netanyahu's Likud won the most seats of any single party, 27 in the 120-seat Knesset, but his wider coalition took only 53, short of the 61 needed for a majority. Eisenkot's Yashar party came second with 21 seats, while his four-party coalition won 48. Two parties representing Israel's Arab minority won an unprecedented 19 seats.

What comes next

Eisenkot has 28 days to form a government, with a possible 14-day extension. His options include a minority government backed from outside by Arab parties, a coalition with ultra-Orthodox parties, or a unity government with Netanyahu. Analysts say all three are unlikely. If he fails, another candidate can try, and then parliament can nominate someone else. The overall deadline is about 100 days, after which a new election is held.

Who is Eisenkot

Eisenkot, 66, is the son of Moroccan immigrants and would be Israel's first prime minister from the Mizrahi community, Jews with roots in the Middle East and North Africa. He entered politics in 2022. After Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel he briefly served in Netanyahu's wartime cabinet before returning to the opposition, where he publicly criticised Netanyahu's leadership, including the conduct of the military campaign in Gaza. He has vowed not to serve in a government with him. Since 2023, a son and two nephews of his have been killed fighting in Gaza.

Eisenkot has criticised settler violence in the occupied West Bank and opposes Netanyahu's far-right partners Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich.