Israel Coalition Race: Bennett Backs Eisenkot as Herzog Talks Loom

Former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett will recommend opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to form the next government, his B’Yachad party said on Sunday, as President Isaac Herzog prepares to open coalition consultations on Wednesday. The move strengthens Eisenkot’s claim to the first mandate after last Tuesday’s election left neither bloc with a majority in the 120-seat Knesset.

At the same time, the vote itself has become a political battleground. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s camp has claimed, without providing evidence, that Arab-led parties “stole” the election with foreign money. Israel’s election authorities said on Sunday that the results stand.

What Were the Israel Election Results?

According to Al Jazeera and NBC News, parties aligned with Netanyahu won 53 seats, while the opposition bloc led by Eisenkot won 48. Netanyahu’s Likud remains the largest single party with 27 seats, ahead of Eisenkot’s Yashar on 21, according to The Jerusalem Post. Israel’s three Arab-led parties won a record 19 seats between them, nearly doubling their representation, with Mansour Abbas’s Ra’am taking eight.

That leaves the Arab parties holding the balance of power. Our earlier reports covered the vote and the final polls and the first results as the count continued. The results are due to be officially certified this week.

Why Does Bennett’s Backing Matter?

B’Yachad said Bennett had been “clear throughout the election campaign that he would respect the voters’ decision, and that is what he is doing.” Opposition leader Yair Lapid holds the second slot on Bennett’s list, so the endorsement brings together two of the most prominent figures in the anti-Netanyahu camp behind Eisenkot.

The Jerusalem Post reported that a senior Joint List official told the Walla news site that the Joint List and Ra’am are also expected to recommend Eisenkot. If the 19 Arab-party recommendations are added to the opposition’s 48 seats, Eisenkot would be backed by 67 members of the Knesset, a figure that would likely lead Herzog to give him the mandate. No agreement had been announced with Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beytenu or Yair Golan’s Democrats as of Sunday.

What Happens at Herzog’s Consultations?

Herzog, whose role is largely ceremonial, decides who gets the first chance to build a coalition. The nominee has 28 days, with a possible 14-day extension, to form a government. The new Knesset is expected to be sworn in on 10 November regardless of the coalition talks, and opposition leaders have reportedly agreed that their first move will be to try to replace Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, a Likud member.

Herzog urged party leaders to approach the talks “with an open heart” and to look for “creative solutions to prevent another round of elections”. He also told politicians to accept the outcome. “The election results are a fact. They are a reality,” he said. “And now is the time to call on all our leaders to stop climbing and face this reality.”

Are the Fraud Claims Backed by Evidence?

No evidence has been made public. Likud has alleged that Arab-led parties accepted funding from Qatar to win votes; Qatar has rejected the claims as a disinformation campaign. The Shin Bet internal security agency has said it is investigating possible foreign interference, but that the probe is not intended to “cast aspersions” on any specific group.

Central Elections Committee head Noam Sohlberg, appearing in a video alongside the Shin Bet chief and the attorney general, said: “Even if the suspicions are substantiated, this would not undermine the integrity of the electoral process or the election results as a whole.”

Separately, police released two of three political activists arrested before polls opened who were carrying envelopes of cash, allegedly to bribe voters. Police said the suspects were connected to Ra’am. Abbas denounced the arrests as undemocratic and “an attempt to influence the election results”. Eisenkot accused Netanyahu of an “orchestrated and organised campaign to delegitimise the results”.

Will Eisenkot Govern With Arab Parties?

That is the central question. Both Netanyahu and Eisenkot ruled out working with Arab parties before the vote. Eisenkot has since said he is open to working with anyone who accepts four conditions: recognising Israel as a Jewish state, committing to the values of its independence, accepting mandatory military service for all citizens, and recognising Hamas as a terrorist organisation. Netanyahu said on Sunday that it was “forbidden” to form a government with Abbas.

Analysts are split. Fawaz Gerges of the London School of Economics told NBC News that the conditions effectively ask the Arab parties to “forsake their identity”, while Yossi Mekelberg of Chatham House sees flexibility that could yield a breakthrough. There are also signs of movement on the other side: Rabbi Moshe Maya of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, a long-standing Netanyahu ally, said there was “no reason to rule out coalition negotiations with Eisenkot”.

What Happens Next?

Netanyahu stays on as caretaker prime minister until a new government is sworn in. If Eisenkot receives the mandate and cannot form a coalition within the deadline, Herzog can hand it to another candidate. If that also fails, Israel could face yet another election. For more on the region, see our coverage of US–Iran mediation efforts.

Featured image: The Knesset building in Jerusalem, by Clema12 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. File photo.

Sources

• Al Jazeera — Israeli officials say results stand as Netanyahu claims election stolen (2 November 2026).
• NBC News — Israel’s president urges ‘open heart’ to avoid fresh election (1 November 2026).
• The Jerusalem Post — Bennett to recommend Eisenkot as prime minister, B’Yachad party says (1 November 2026).