A mandate, but no majority
President Isaac Herzog gave Eisenkot the task of forming a government on Sunday, November 8. According to ABC News, factions holding 67 of the Knesset's 120 seats recommended him, while Netanyahu received backing from factions with 46 seats.
Those recommendations followed the October 27 parliamentary election, in which neither Netanyahu's governing bloc nor the opposition bloc led by Eisenkot, a former army chief, reached the 61 seats required for a majority.
Almost half of the lawmakers sworn in on November 10 had not served in the previous parliament, BBC News reported. A phoenix segment dated the same day, featuring ARD's Tel Aviv correspondent Pia Stecklbach, characterized Eisenkot's government-formation task as extremely difficult.
How the seats are divided
ABC News and BBC News reported that Eisenkot's four-party alliance controls 48 seats. His own party, Yashar, has 21; Together has 12; The Democrats has eight; and Yisrael Beiteinu has seven. Netanyahu's bloc holds 53 seats, including Likud's 27.
The two Arab-led parties secured a record combined total of 19 seats: 11 for the Joint List and eight for the United Arab List. United Torah Judaism, the ultra-Orthodox party with seven seats, recommended neither Eisenkot nor Netanyahu.
Coalition options face disputes over participation and service
Analysts outlined five possible outcomes in ABC News's coverage. Eisenkot's four Jewish anti-Netanyahu parties could form a 48-seat minority government with outside Arab support, or bring in the ultra-Orthodox parties United Torah Judaism and Shas for a Jewish coalition holding exactly 61 seats. Other possibilities are a 67-seat Jewish-Arab coalition, a broad unity government with Likud holding about 75 seats, or failed negotiations followed by another election.
Yisrael Beiteinu leader Avigdor Liberman has rejected joining a minority government that depends on Arab members of the Knesset. Liberman, whose party has seven seats, has instead floated bringing Shas and United Torah Judaism into a coalition.
Military service is a central point of disagreement. Israel's Supreme Court struck down sweeping exemptions for ultra-Orthodox, or Haredi, men in 2024. Shas and United Torah Judaism, which together hold 13 seats, oppose changing the status quo that every party in Eisenkot's bloc campaigned to end.
Eisenkot has said participation in his proposed government is open to any party or lawmaker accepting four principles, BBC News reported. These require recognizing Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, accepting the values of its Declaration of Independence, supporting mandatory military, national or civilian service for everyone, including currently exempt communities, and recognizing Hamas as a terrorist organization while committing to dismantle its military and governing capabilities.
The timetable for forming a government
Eisenkot has 28 days to secure a coalition, and Herzog can grant a further 14 days, according to ABC News. If Eisenkot fails, the president can assign the task to another Knesset member. Netanyahu is considered the likely next candidate; another unsuccessful attempt could lead to new elections.
