Gadi Eisenkot, the former military chief who leads the Yashar party, has won the backing of a majority of Israel's parliament to become the country's next prime minister, after two days of consultations with President Isaac Herzog. Factions totalling 67 of the Knesset's 120 lawmakers recommended Eisenkot, while 46 backed the incumbent, Benjamin Netanyahu — a result that puts Eisenkot in line to receive the mandate to try to form a government, though Herzog said he would announce his decision on Sunday after further talks.
The outcome is the clearest sign yet that Netanyahu, who has led Israel through three years of war, could be about to lose power. But an endorsement is not a government: the parties that backed Eisenkot are deeply divided, and his path to assembling a working coalition remains uncertain.
How the numbers broke down
Herzog held consultations with every Knesset faction at the President's Residence in Jerusalem on Wednesday and Thursday, after the Central Election Committee certified the results of the 27 October general election and submitted them to the president. In that election, neither Netanyahu's bloc nor Eisenkot's won a majority: Netanyahu's bloc took 53 seats, Eisenkot's opposition bloc 48, and Arab-led parties 19.
When the factions made their recommendations, the arithmetic shifted decisively in Eisenkot's favour:
| Candidate | Endorsements | Backing factions |
|---|---|---|
| Gadi Eisenkot | 67 | Yashar, B'Yachad (Together), The Democrats and Yisrael Beiteinu — the 48-seat Jewish-led opposition bloc — plus Ra'am (8 seats) and the Joint List (11 seats) |
| Benjamin Netanyahu | 46 | Likud, Shas, Religious Zionism, Zehut and Otzma Yehudit |
| Neither candidate | 7 | United Torah Judaism, which declined to recommend anyone |
Yashar said the 67 recommendations were the largest number given to a candidate since 2015. Haaretz reported that all Arab-majority parties decided to recommend Eisenkot, and the Joint List said its decision was aimed at replacing Netanyahu's government.
Herzog said the result was "clear", but added that he would hold further talks with party leaders to clarify the situation before assigning the mandate on Sunday. Under Israel's Basic Law, the recommendations are not binding: Herzog has broad discretion over whom to task with forming a government, though a candidate backed by a majority of lawmakers is ordinarily given the mandate.
"I intend to task a member of Knesset with forming the government this coming Sunday. In these talks, I intend to leave no stone unturned in an effort to reach out and build a stable and good government for the people of Israel."
— President Isaac Herzog, quoted by Haaretz
The defection that changed the arithmetic
The pivotal moment was the decision by United Torah Judaism (UTJ), the ultra-Orthodox party that has backed Netanyahu after the previous five elections, to decline to recommend its longtime ally. The party told Herzog it had decided not to recommend any member of the Knesset to form a government.
According to The Economic Times, UTJ's leadership acted out of frustration over Netanyahu's failure to pass long-promised legislation enshrining military-service exemptions for yeshiva students, and told Herzog that any future backing would be strictly contingent on securing those exemptions. Netanyahu's endorsement tally fell from his bloc's 53 election seats to 46 as a result.
The Times of Israel reported that UTJ's abstention may also have opened a new route for Eisenkot. Channel 12 reported on Thursday that Yisrael Beiteinu chairman Avigdor Liberman, a staunch secularist, has lifted his longtime refusal to sit with the Haredi parties and is open to a partnership with UTJ, viewing the possibility of ousting Netanyahu as the more important goal. Liberman has also reportedly said he believes sitting with Haredi factions is preferable to joining with or relying on the support of Arab-led parties. The report suggested such a government could include a prime ministerial rotation agreement between Liberman and Eisenkot, as well as negotiations over a Haredi military draft agreement.
Why the endorsements matter — and what they don't decide. The 67 recommendations show where the Knesset's sympathies lie, but they do not create a coalition. Eisenkot's backers include parties that disagree sharply with one another on security, religion and the role of Arab parties in government. The mandate gives the recipient 28 days to form a government, with a possible 14-day extension — and if no one succeeds, a fresh election follows.
What stands in Eisenkot's way
The central obstacle is that the 67 is a recommendation majority, not a coalition. The anti-Netanyahu parties are split between a 48-member Jewish-led bloc and a 19-member bloc of Arab-led parties, and Eisenkot has made recognition of Hamas as a terrorist organisation one of his conditions for parties seeking to join his prospective government.
Ra'am leader Mansour Abbas, in his meeting with Herzog, stopped short of explicitly recognising Hamas as a terrorist organisation, despite repeatedly condemning terrorism and political violence and calling for Hamas to be disarmed and removed from power. Pressed by Herzog on whether Ra'am could be part of a government that fights terrorism without limits, Abbas said: "To claim that our presence in a government would prevent a cabinet or government from defending Israeli citizens is not right."
The Joint List, which holds 11 seats, has been blunt about the limits of its support. Its chair, Yousef Jabareen, said the delegation's backing reflected Arab voters' demand for change, but acknowledged "disagreements with Eisenkot on many issues". He added: "We are not choosing between good and better, but between what we see as bad and even worse."
Joint List MK Ahmad Tibi told Herzog the party would support a minority government from the outside, and did not want to help form a government only to see it collapse soon afterwards. "If we support a government from outside, we don't want to give it a safety net only to bring it down a month, two months or three months later," he said. Tibi also stressed the party's leverage: "No parliamentary or political move in the Knesset can happen without the Joint List."
Eisenkot's own camp has signalled it will negotiate first with its allied parties in the opposition bloc, forming a core that could later be joined by others who accept its principles. Former Shin Bet chief Yoram Cohen, speaking for Yashar, said Israel needs a stable government quickly, and argued that given the high voter turnout, "it would be wrong to ignore the people's desire for change and go to another round of elections." Eisenkot has vowed to form a national emergency government as soon as possible.
What Netanyahu's camp is doing
Likud lawmakers used their consultation to urge opposition parties to join a broad unity government of Jewish-led parties, and to attack the bloc backing Eisenkot. Education Minister Yoav Kisch called for a "broad national government", saying Israel could not meet its challenges under a government reliant on Arab parties. Transportation Minister Miri Regev called Eisenkot's backers a "disaster bloc" — prompting Herzog to push back: "If you want to extend a hand, you can't call it a 'disaster bloc.'"
The Economic Times reported that Rabbi Moshe Maya, a senior member of Shas's ruling Council of Torah Sages, has urged Eisenkot to join Netanyahu in a rotation government, with ultra-Orthodox parties and Religious Zionism participating. B'Yachad representatives dismissed the idea of a unity government with partners they consider opposed to basic democratic values, with MK Merav Cohen saying she had "learned not to do business with scorpions" after a previous unity government broke its agreements.
What is not yet known. Herzog has not yet said whom he will task with forming the government, and the recommendations do not bind him. No coalition agreement has been announced, and no party has confirmed it will sit in an Eisenkot-led government. Reports of a Liberman–Eisenkot rotation and of Liberman's openness to UTJ come from Channel 12 reporting cited by The Times of Israel, not from the parties themselves.
What happens next
| Date | Development |
|---|---|
| 27 October 2026 | General election; no bloc wins a majority (Netanyahu 53, Eisenkot bloc 48, Arab-led parties 19) |
| 4 November | Central Election Committee certifies results; Herzog begins consultations |
| 5 November | Consultations conclude: Eisenkot 67 recommendations, Netanyahu 46, UTJ abstains |
| 8 November (Sunday) | Herzog to announce who receives the mandate to form a government |
| 10 November | New Knesset sworn in; opposition pushing for an early vote on a new speaker |
| After the mandate | 28 days to form a government, with a possible 14-day extension; failure could mean a fresh election |
The new Knesset is due to be sworn in on 10 November, and the opposition is already moving to use its numbers there. On Thursday, Ra'am joined Yashar, the Joint List, Yisrael Beiteinu and the Democrats in calling for an early vote on a new speaker. Current speaker Amir Ohana said he would schedule a debate on his replacement if at least 61 lawmakers formally request one. The speaker wields considerable influence over parliamentary proceedings and controls the legislative agenda with their deputies.
Herzog, who has urged both sides to accept that "not every commitment and promise can be fulfilled" and to avoid another election, will now hold further talks before Sunday's announcement. If Eisenkot receives the mandate, the hard bargaining — over the draft exemption, the role of Arab parties, and who sits at the cabinet table — begins in earnest.
Frequently asked questions
Does 67 endorsements mean Eisenkot is prime minister?
No. The recommendations are not binding, and President Herzog has broad discretion over whom to task with forming a government. A candidate backed by a majority of lawmakers is ordinarily given the mandate, but the mandate only starts a 28-day negotiation period — it does not install a government.
Can Eisenkot actually form a coalition?
That is the open question. His 67 endorsements span a 48-seat Jewish-led opposition bloc and 19 seats from Arab-led parties, and the Joint List has said it would support a minority government from the outside rather than join it. Whether the Haredi UTJ can be brought in — the option Liberman is reportedly exploring — may decide whether a stable majority is possible.
Why did United Torah Judaism abandon Netanyahu?
According to The Economic Times, UTJ was frustrated by Netanyahu's failure to pass legislation exempting yeshiva students from military service, and told Herzog its future backing would be contingent on those exemptions. The party has backed Netanyahu after the previous five elections.
What happens if nobody can form a government?
Under Israel's Basic Laws, the formation of a government can take several months, and if no one succeeds, a fresh election follows. Herzog has urged the parties to avoid that outcome.
What is the 28-day deadline?
Once the president tasks a lawmaker with forming a government, that person has 28 days to do so, with a possible 14-day extension. The clock starts when the mandate is given — expected on Sunday.
Key takeaways
- Gadi Eisenkot won 67 of 120 Knesset recommendations to form Israel's next government, against 46 for Benjamin Netanyahu, after President Herzog's two days of consultations.
- United Torah Judaism, Netanyahu's ally in five previous elections, declined to recommend anyone — the defection that cost him his majority of endorsements.
- Herzog will announce who receives the mandate on Sunday; the recommendations are not binding, but a majority-backed candidate is ordinarily chosen.
- Eisenkot's path to a coalition is still unclear: his backers are split between a 48-seat Jewish-led bloc and 19 Arab-led seats, and the Joint List says it would support a minority government only from outside.
- The new Knesset is sworn in on 10 November, and the opposition is already pushing for an early vote to replace the speaker.
What to watch next: Herzog's announcement on Sunday, 8 November, is the immediate test — followed by whether Eisenkot, if tasked, can turn 67 recommendations into a coalition within 28 days. Watch also for any Liberman–UTJ talks on the draft exemption, and for the Knesset speaker vote after the new parliament is sworn in on 10 November. If the mandate fails, Israel could be heading for another election.
