Israeli Elections Update

It is an incredibly exciting time to be in Israel. Last November/December, the current government collapsed and new elections were called for mid-March. With the 17^th of March quickly approaching, most Israelis have been closely following all the recent polls, campaign videos, and candidate mishaps.

What does it mean for a government to collapse? How does Israeli democracy work? A political theorist once explained that although the United States and Israel both are examples of democracies, their two styles of government could not be further apart. To begin, there are dozens upon dozens of political parties in this tiny country the size of New Jersey. Each party has its prioritized list of MKs (Minister of Knesset), and on Election Day voters submit their ballot to the party of their choosing. After the ballots are counted, each party finds outs how many Parliament seats it has received out of the 120 available, based on the percentage of votes they receive.  Whichever party receives the most seats (often somewhere between 25-35) gets the opportunity to form a leading coalition of different parties. So what is the current situation like?

Prime Minister Netanyahu’s most recent government collapsed due to political rifts within his coalition. As a result, he called for new elections in an effort to reconfigure a more effective leading majority. However, the past few months have provided a new hope for an alternative to Bibi, who most Israelis reluctantly support due to the lack of other options. In December, Labor (Avodah) Party’s leader Isaac “Buji” Herzog formed a joint party with Tzipi Livni, former head of peace negotiations with the Palestinians. The two politicians formed the Zionist Union (Mahane Tzioni) party, which is now directly competing with Bibi for the top post. Polls, as they always do, continue to fluctuate with each week. As of now, Buji and Bibi are each slated to receive somewhere around 25 seats, with other parties in the periphery such as Yesh Atid, Jewish Home, Kulano, and the newly formed United Arab List receiving around 10 seats.  After March 17^th’s elections, the leading party will have sixty days to form its majority coalition. These sixty days are just as important as the actual elections as the leading party chooses who to include in the next government.

Judging from the majority of conversations I have had with Israelis (mostly secular), many seem to be leaning towards Herzog’s Zionist Union. However, there is not much hope amongst these citizens that Bibi can actually be defeated. These next five weeks will be crucial for any party in campaigning for the 25% of Israelis who are still undecided. It will also be interesting to watch what the Arab voter turnout is on Election Day. With the four Arab parties joining together to form the United Arab List, it is perhaps likely that turnout will be higher than in past elections. With some polls indicating upwards of 11 or 12 seats, the party would be an asset, although unlikely, in forming a Left-leaning coalition.

Check out some of the more entertaining political campaign videos:

“The Bibi-Sitter” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHmYj5jJ3rw

“Naftali the Apologizing Hipster” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBN0nqQX5xo

Recent poll information: http://www.timesofisrael.com/1-in-4-israelis-still-undecided-but-more-of-them-leaning-toward-herzog/