[miss marmelstein]

I agree that parliamentary elections are tough to understand but Haaretz called it for Ganz - sp? - yesterday.

[frogjerk]

Not a big fan of parliamentary government. Way too much compromising of values and lack of stability and no real separation of powers.

[Sacajaweau]

Let me know when we have a decision.

[DoodleDawg]

Gantz cannot form a government under any circumstances. He cannot build a majority coalition.

Neither can Netenyahu. Either Blue and White form a unity government with Ganz as the first PM or they go for election number 3.

[goldstategop]

Gantz’s Kachol Lavan has only 33 seats. He would need the religious parties and Yisrael Beinteinu as well as the parties of the Israeli Left to form a government.

That means he would need to make compromises to make it happen. He can’t with some of his potential partners’ aversion to sitting with the religious.

Which leaves a coalition with the Likud and secular Zionist parties. Those are his only options.

That or a Likud-led government will be established. The alternative are new elections. A reality that will become clear in the coming weeks.

[allendale]

The evolving situation with Iran will force Lieberman and Netanyahu to settle their differences (at least temporarily) and form a national unity war government. When shooting starts in the Gulf and Israel is attacked by Iran or its proxies, Israel will then use the opportunity to destroy Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, its nuclear personnel and much of its “revolutionary guards”. It will be amazing what the stealthy GPS directed drones in conjunction with on the ground Mossad will do. Iran is the existential threat to Israel and the Jewish people. Netanyahu will not leave office until he deals with Iran.

[faucetman]

Thank you for that clear and easy to understand explanation.

[Socon-Econ]

I’ve heard that certain voters who were prone to favor Bibi are growing tired of the ultra-orthodox who normally partner with him, especially due to their exemption exemption from military service and their control over who is to be considered a Jew.

[RArtfulogerDodger]

Why listen to somebody who totally knows what they are talking about, when we can lounge about and watch Marvel and Game of Thrones and singers and kneelers, in the phony fckng “reality” made up by the leftist, communist, pro-islam, lying, basrterds in the “western” media???

[humbleexpert]

Until the next election, Bibi will remain Israel’s functioning prime minister. He will continue to make Israel’s foreign-policy and military decisions.

As for Israel’s economy, it’s been doing wonderfully under his free-market-principled leadership, and it will continue to do so because there’s no chance left-wing socialist politicians can gain power in Israel, now that its left-wing socialist party, Labor, has become virtually extinct.

So the best thing Bibi can do for himself and Israel is to try to schedule the next election as far into the future as possible, so he can continue to govern Israel; and if his opponent, Mr. Ganz, wants to argue about the date of the election, wonderful, his and Bibi’s supporters can spend the next year or two arguing about the election’s date while Bibi remains in power.

[Redmen4ever]

There is no such thing as a perfect election system. One of our boys (Kenneth Arrow) proved that a long time ago. Nevertheless, some democracies are better structured than others.

Regarding Israel; there are maybe three options:

A. A right-wing government. The ultra-orthodox parties give up deferments for their precious Talmidim, so those boys - like the girls of the country - serve in the IDF. I think such a concession to reality would enable a right-wing majority government to be formed (i.e., current government plus Beiteinu).

B. A unity government. Likud and Blue & White join into a “unity” government. Since Blue & White got more votes, they get Prime Minister. Netanyahu gets to be Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister. The main and perhaps only purpose of this coalition is to take the next step in the so-called peace process (what Blue & White describes as the separation process). Blue & White is pretty close to Likud on this matter. And, the coalition wouldn’t be handicapped by unreasonable demands by the ultra-orthodox.

C. A balanced-center coalition. This would be Blue & White plus the two small Zionist parties to its left and the two small secular Zionist parties to its right (roughly, Labor, Meretz, Beiteinu Yisrael and United Right, in addition to Blue & White). This coalition would be handicapped by the left-wing parties who persist in thinking you can negotiate with the Palestinians. That’s not going to happen in the foreseeable future.

The next step is blue slips in which members of the new Knesset indicate to the President whom they want to be given the first chance of forming a majority coalition. If the matter of deferments isn’t settle like right now, the leader of Blue & White will get the most blue slips. Then, it’s probably B or C.

BTW Trump is exactly 100 percent right: we have a special relation with Israel, not with any party or politician.

[Impala64ssa]

FTA: "Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not lose and his challenger, former IDF chief of general staff and Blue and White faction chief Benny Gantz did not win. Despite the fact that Blue and White won 31 seats in the 120-seat Knesset to Likud’s 31 seats, Gantz cannot form a government under any circumstances. He cannot build a majority coalition."
Sounds like the Israeli's, or any country under a Parliamentary system, version of gridlock.