Eisenkot Vows New Government as Netanyahu Bloc Misses Majority
(MENAFN) Neither political camp had secured a governing majority as vote counting advanced, and Gadi Eisenkot, head of the Yashar party, declared late Wednesday that Israelis had turned against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. He vowed to assemble a replacement coalition built around mandatory military service.
Writing on X, Eisenkot said he was wrapping up a full day of meetings and negotiations aimed at delivering on the voters’ mandate.
“Long working days still lie ahead, but we are focused on the weighty task entrusted to us: bringing change to Israel and forming a Zionist government committed to conscription,” he wrote.
Eisenkot said the electorate had delivered a verdict against “the government of Oct. 7 and draft evasion,” and against the wider “draft-dodgers’ bloc,” a reference to Netanyahu’s ruling alliance. He said that camp had sunk to its weakest standing in 20 years.
“I feel the weight of the responsibility and the trust placed in me by hundreds of thousands of citizens who believe in the State of Israel and in Zionism,” Eisenkot wrote.
He credited his supporters with a milestone, saying his party had emerged as a new political force in under a year, one that speaks for Israelis from every part of society and presents a credible, responsible alternative to the current government.
“Thanks to you, we made history,” he told them.
He promised results: “We will act and succeed.”
The numbers: With 89.8% of ballots tallied, projections gave Netanyahu’s bloc 53 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, against 48 for the bloc led by Eisenkot. The two predominantly Arab parties were on track for a combined 19 seats. Neither main camp had reached the 61 seats required to command a majority.
The results are still provisional. Hundreds of thousands of “double-envelope” ballots, among them those cast by soldiers and diplomats, remain to be counted and could shift the final picture.
Writing on X, Eisenkot said he was wrapping up a full day of meetings and negotiations aimed at delivering on the voters’ mandate.
“Long working days still lie ahead, but we are focused on the weighty task entrusted to us: bringing change to Israel and forming a Zionist government committed to conscription,” he wrote.
Eisenkot said the electorate had delivered a verdict against “the government of Oct. 7 and draft evasion,” and against the wider “draft-dodgers’ bloc,” a reference to Netanyahu’s ruling alliance. He said that camp had sunk to its weakest standing in 20 years.
“I feel the weight of the responsibility and the trust placed in me by hundreds of thousands of citizens who believe in the State of Israel and in Zionism,” Eisenkot wrote.
He credited his supporters with a milestone, saying his party had emerged as a new political force in under a year, one that speaks for Israelis from every part of society and presents a credible, responsible alternative to the current government.
“Thanks to you, we made history,” he told them.
He promised results: “We will act and succeed.”
The numbers: With 89.8% of ballots tallied, projections gave Netanyahu’s bloc 53 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, against 48 for the bloc led by Eisenkot. The two predominantly Arab parties were on track for a combined 19 seats. Neither main camp had reached the 61 seats required to command a majority.
The results are still provisional. Hundreds of thousands of “double-envelope” ballots, among them those cast by soldiers and diplomats, remain to be counted and could shift the final picture.
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