Israeli President Isaac Herzog began the delicate machinery of government formation on November 4, 2026, receiving final election results that stripped Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right coalition of its governing majority. Following Tuesday’s vote, the official tally revealed that Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc won 53 seats, leaving it short of a parliamentary majority, whereas the primary opposition captured 48. Arab-led parties won a historic 19 seats. The 120-seat Knesset now requires factions to engage in discussions to see if a coalition commanding a minimum of 61 seats can be assembled.
Election Commission Rejects Fraud Allegations
The official outcomes of last week’s ballot, which removed the far-right coalition led by Benjamin Netanyahu from its governing majority, were endorsed on Wednesday by Israel’s election commission, which dismissed accusations of widespread irregularities pushed by the prime minister. The body’s chair, Noam Sohlberg, stated that some suspicions remained under investigation, but noted that they do not cast doubt on the election as a whole or justify delaying the election results
. Netanyahu lost his majority in parliament. Now he claims elections were stolen, with his Likud party and allies alleging interference, bribery, and foreign funding. During the vote handover, Herzog denounced racist attacks on Palestinian citizens who participated at historic rates, stating, I condemn the coarseness and racist expressions that we have heard recently,
and adding, I hold Arab society in Israel in great respect.
Opposition Accuses Netanyahu of Attacking Democracy Amid Far-Right Arrest Calls
Main challenger Gadi Eisenkot accused Netanyahu of launching a pogrom against democracy
in an effort to hold onto power by discrediting valid votes and weaponising security forces against parties led by Palestinian citizens of Israel. Eisenkot has secured the public support of all the Jewish Israeli opposition parties, while Palestinian-led parties have indicated their priority is removing Netanyahu. Meanwhile, Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir, both far-right allies of Netanyahu, demanded the detention of Arab faction heads, with Ben Gvir asserting that Qatar financed efforts to increase Arab voter participation—an accusation that Doha dismissed outright as “ridiculous and dangerous.” Establishing the next administration could require weeks of talks to determine whether a coalition can secure the necessary 61 seats, leaving the path forward unclear.
Earlier coverage: Israel Central Elections Committee Finds No Fraud, Undercuts Netanyahu
