Sunday, November 8, 2026
President Isaac Herzog formally handed Gadi Eisenkot the mandate to form Israel's next government on Sunday, at a ceremony at the President's Residence in Jerusalem — and with it, the clock started on the effort to end Benjamin Netanyahu's time in power. Eisenkot, the former military chief of staff who leads the Yashar party, won the backing of 67 lawmakers in the president's consultations, against 46 for Netanyahu. By law he now has 28 days to build a coalition, and Herzog may grant him up to 14 more days if he needs them.
Herzog called for unity as he handed over the mandate, saying the time had come "to reach out a hand, to do everything for the unity of our people, and to strive for the best and most stable government possible for the people of Israel who yearn for it." Turning to Eisenkot, he said: "I expect you to do everything in your power to establish a government that will serve the entire people." The president noted that Netanyahu's Likud remains the largest single faction in the Knesset with 27 seats, but said it was "evident" that Eisenkot held the "clear and unequivocal support" of a majority of lawmakers on the question that matters — who has the better chance of forming a government that can win the Knesset's confidence.
Eisenkot used the ceremony to repeat his call for a national emergency government, saying the country is "approaching a point of no return for the State of Israel." "We must establish a national emergency government. Creative and unconventional political steps will be required," he said, adding: "The days when Israelis felt excluded by their government must come to an end and must never return." He said his "door was open" and his "hand was extended with a full heart and a willing spirit," and he called on every Knesset party to accept the four principles he has set as his condition for joining his coalition — even Netanyahu's own camp: "If Likud and the Religious Zionist Party members truly believe that this is a time for unity, as they declared before the president, I cannot imagine a reason why they would not join and support a government under my leadership."
The arithmetic shows why the next 28 days will be hard. The October election left the Knesset deadlocked: Netanyahu's bloc holds 53 seats and the opposition bloc 48, with neither near the 61 needed to govern. Eisenkot's 67 recommendations include both Arab parties, Ra'am and the Joint List, which won a record 19 seats between them — but their backing does not commit them to joining his government. One door opened for him on the other side: the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party, a longtime Netanyahu partner, refused to recommend anyone amid reported tensions with Netanyahu, and opposition leaders have recently begun talking to the ultra-Orthodox parties they once ruled out. If Eisenkot fails — or a government he presents loses a confidence vote — Herzog can hand the task to another lawmaker for 28 days with no extension; if that fails too, 61 lawmakers can jointly nominate a candidate for a final 14-day attempt, and if every attempt fails the Knesset dissolves and Israel votes again, with Netanyahu's government staying on as caretaker in the meantime.
Who governs Israel next matters well beyond Jerusalem. Washington works with Israel on the war in Gaza, on Iran, and on the security arrangements that American policy in the Middle East is built around, so the White House will be watching whether the man who takes power is Netanyahu or the general who promises to unite the country against him. For ordinary Israelis, the stakes are daily life itself — the war, security, and the cost of living all wait on whether Eisenkot can turn 67 recommendations into a government that survives.
— Previously posted on Saturday, November 7, 2026 —
Israel's president, Isaac Herzog, has chosen Gadi Eisenkot — the former military chief of staff who leads the Yashar party and is Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's strongest rival — to try to form a new government, after last month's election left the Knesset deadlocked and neither man with a clear path to power. Herzog's office said he informed Eisenkot on Saturday night "of his intention to task him with forming a government," and the formal appointment will take place at an official ceremony on Sunday at the president's residence in Jerusalem.
Eisenkot answered on X: "Now is the time to form a national emergency government. I will do everything to ensure we are worthy." If he succeeds in building a coalition, he will take over as prime minister from Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving premier.
The numbers explain the deadlock. Netanyahu's religious-nationalist coalition lost its majority in the October 27 election, but his camp still emerged as the largest bloc with 53 of the Knesset's 120 seats. Eisenkot's wide-ranging opposition bloc won 48. Neither reaches the 61 needed to govern. In the consultations with Herzog, 67 lawmakers recommended Eisenkot against 46 for Netanyahu — the 66-year-old also received the endorsements of both Arab-majority lists, whose unprecedented gains made them potential kingmakers — though it remains unclear whether Eisenkot's bloc would accept their support in forming a government.
Eisenkot, who was the military's chief of staff from 2015 to 2019, has set out to unite Israelis after Netanyahu's divisive tenure. He has vowed to crack down on extremist West Bank settlers who have attacked Palestinians, calling the incidents "Jewish terror" abetted by Netanyahu's government — but he is no dove: he opposes the creation of a Palestinian state and has vowed to end Hamas's rule in Gaza and destroy its military wing. Who ends up governing Israel decides the war in Gaza, the violence in the West Bank, and the security and cost of daily life for every Israeli family — which is why this coalition fight matters far beyond the Knesset.
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