Israel is heading to its fourth election in two years after its parliament failed to pass a new budget by the midnight deadline, the Israeli Knesset spokesman’s office confirmed early Wednesday.
The failure to approve a budget by deadline is a technical reason for triggering an automatic dissolution of the country’s current government, as well as an automatic snap election, which is scheduled for March 23.
The state budgets were advanced in the cabinet and Knesset but has not yet been passed into law.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main rival, former military chief and current defense minister Benny Gantz, in May formed a unity government to address the health and economic impacts caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, which causes the COVID-19 disease. This comes after the two battled in three inconclusive elections held since April 2019.
Their power-sharing deal meant Gantz assumed the new role of “alternate prime minister,” and he was to trade positions with Netanyahu in November 2021, halfway through their term.
But they have been unable to resolve their dispute over passing a national budget. Both Netanyahu and Gantz have blamed each other for being unable to come to a consensus.
Netanyahu’s Likud party and Gantz’s Blue and White party had earlier agreed to extend the deadline for passing the state budget and preventing early elections. But Gantz issued new demands, after which rebels in both parties prevented the bill from passing, reported the Jerusalem Post.
“It is no secret that the Likud and I did not want to go to elections,” Netanyahu said in a Knesset press conference, reported the outlet. “Israel is going to elections due to internal fights in Blue and White.”
He added that he had agreed to the agreement to switch roles in November 2021,