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All 120 seats in theKnesset 61 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 64.72% ( 1.17pp) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
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Legislative elections were held inIsrael on 10 February 2009 to elect the 120 members of the eighteenthKnesset.[1] These elections became necessary due to the resignation ofPrime MinisterEhud Olmert as leader of theKadima party, and the failure of his successor,Tzipi Livni, to form acoalition government. Had Olmert remained in office or had Livni formed a coalition government, the elections would have been scheduled for 2010 instead.
Although the incumbent prime minister's party, Kadima, won the most seats in the parliament, theLikud leaderBenjamin Netanyahu was able to form a majority coalition government and become the new prime minister.
On 17 September 2008,Kadima helda leadership election, which was won byTzipi Livni. Following Livni's victory, former party leaderEhud Olmert (who did not run in the contest) resigned as prime minister. Livni was given six weeks to form a coalition,[2] but set a deadline of 26 October for parties to agree to join the new government.
Although theLabor Party agreed to join, current coalition memberShas rejected the opportunity; Livni claimed that it had made "economically and diplomatically illegitimate" demands (including a reluctance to increase child benefits, and rejection of the possible division ofJerusalem in a deal with thePalestinians).[3] It was reported that Shas had rejected almost one billionshekels in child allowances offered to it as part of the coalition negotiations.[4]Gil andUnited Torah Judaism had both rejected offers to join, while negotiations withMeretz-Yachad were still ongoing.[5] On 26 October, Livni recommended toPresidentShimon Peres that early elections be held.[3]
President Peres had three days to consult on the recommendation, after which there was a period of three weeks in which otherKnesset members could have offered to form an alternative coalition, but no such alternative was brought.[3]
The election would have to be held within 90 days after the end of that period.[2] Although Kadima submitted a bill to the Knesset on 27 October to call early elections and bypass the three-week period,[6] Peres' announcement to the Knesset that there was no chance of forming a government meant that the full waiting period stood.[6] Ehud Olmert was to remain the caretaker prime minister until a new government was formed after the elections.[2]
The traditional distinction between the Israeli left and the right had become blurred, with both the voters and the main candidates gravitating toward the center. Israelis, who had always been highly politicized, were switching affiliations more easily. On the Palestinian front, stark differences among the parties still remained. Kadima was committed to continuing talks for atwo-state solution. Labor did not believe that bilateral Israeli–Palestinian negotiations could succeed under the current circumstances, and advocated a more comprehensive, regional approach to peace.Likud said it would promote an "economic peace" with the Palestinians and also hold political negotiations, although it was not clear about what.[7][8]
Elections to the Knesset allocate 120 seats byparty-list proportional representation, using theD'Hondt method. Theelection threshold for the 2006 election was set at 2% (up from 1.5% in previous elections), which is a little over two seats.
After official results are published, the president delegates the task of forming a government to the member of Knesset with the best chance of assembling a majority coalition (usually the leader of the largest party, but not required). That member has up to 42 days to negotiate with the different parties, and then present the government to the Knesset for avote of confidence. Once the government is approved (by a vote of at least 61 members), the leader becomes prime minister.
The table below lists the parliamentary factions represented in the17th Knesset.
| Name | Ideology | Symbol | Leader | 2006 result | Seats at 2008 dissolution | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes (%) | Seats | ||||||
| Kadima | Liberalism | כן | Tzipi Livni | 22.02% | 29 / 120 | 29 / 120 | |
| Labor | Social democracy | אמת | Ehud Barak | 15.06% | 19 / 120 | 19 / 120 | |
| Shas | Religious conservatism | שס | Eli Yishai | 9.53% | 12 / 120 | 12 / 120 | |
| Likud | National liberalism | מחל | Benjamin Netanyahu | 8.99% | 12 / 120 | 12 / 120 | |
| Yisrael Beiteinu | Nationalism Secularism | ל | Avigdor Lieberman | 8.99% | 11 / 120 | 11 / 120 | |
| National Union-NRP | Religious Zionism National conservatism | טב | Yaakov Katz | 7.14% | 9 / 120 | 9 / 120 | |
| Gil | Pensioners' interests | זך | Rafi Eitan | 5.92% | 7 / 120 | 7 / 120 | |
| UTJ | Religious conservatism | ג | Yaakov Litzman | 4.69% | 6 / 120 | 6 / 120 | |
| Meretz | Social democracy Secularism | מרצ | Haim Oron | 3.77% | 5 / 120 | 5 / 120 | |
| Ra'am-Ta'al | Arab nationalism Islamism | עם | Ibrahim Sarsur | 3.02% | 4 / 120 | 4 / 120 | |
| Hadash | Communism Socialism | ו | Mohammad Barakeh | 2.74% | 3 / 120 | 3 / 120 | |
| Balad | Arab nationalism Pan-arabism | ד | Jamal Zahalka | 2.30% | 3 / 120 | 3 / 120 | |
By 23 December 2008, a record 43 parties had registered with the parties registrar, compared to 31 for the2006 elections,[9] although in the end, only 34 parties submitted a list of candidates,[10] and only 33 ran on election day. On 12 January 2009,Balad and theUnited Arab List–Ta'al alliance were disqualified by theCentral Elections Committee on the grounds that they failed to recognize Israel as a Jewish state and called for armed conflict against it.[11] Balad and Ta'al were also disqualified from the2003 election, but won aSupreme Court case which allowed them to run.[12] On 21 January 2009, the Supreme Court again revoked the ban.[13]
TheLabor–Meimad alliance, in existence since 1999, was ended prior to the elections. Labor ran on its own, and Meimad ran a joint list with the newGreen Movement.[14]
Meretz and Tnu'a HaHadasha, a new movement of left-wing activists led byTzali Reshef, ran a joint list, with Tnua'a HaHadasha representatives getting third, seventh, and eleventh spots on the alliance's list.[15]
The anti-West Bank barrier movement Tarabut was merged intoHadash.[16]
The religiousZionistAhi party, previously part of the National Union alliance, merged into Likud in late December 2008.[17]Ultra-Orthodox partiesAgudat Israel andDegel HaTorah agreed to continue their alliance, United Torah Judaism, for the election.[18]
Several political parties had been established since the 2006 elections. The first wasSocial Justice, founded by billionaireArcadi Gaydamak in February 2007 (which in the end did not run in the election), andYisrael Hazaka was established by the former Labor member of the Knesset,Efraim Sneh, in May 2008.
After the announcement of elections in late October 2008, theTkuma andMoledet factions of theNational Union and theNational Religious Party merged into a single party in early November 2008,[19] which was later namedThe Jewish Home. However, the National Union was re-established after the Moledet and Tkuma factions broke away from the party and agreed to an alliance withHatikva headed byAryeh Eldad andEretz Yisrael Shelanu (Our Land of Israel) headed by Rabbi Sholom Dov Wolpo andBaruch Marzel.[10][20][21][22]
Member of the KnessetAbbas Zakour left the United Arab List to establish the Arab Centre Party in early December 2008.[23] However, he later joined the Balad list.[24]
| Source | Date | Kadima | Labor Party | Shas | Likud | Yisrael Beiteinu | Jewish Home | National Union | Gil | UTJ | Meretz | Ra'am–Ta'al | Hadash | Balad | Greens |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Election result | 10 Feb | 29 | 19 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | |
| Dahaf | 27 Oct[25] | 29 | 11 | 11 | 26 | 9 | 7 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 2 | |||
| Teleseker | 27 Oct[26] | 31 | 11 | 8 | 29 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 11 | 3 | |||
| Gal Hadash | 30 Oct[27] | 30 | 13 | 10 | 31 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 2 | |||
| Gal Hadash | 13 Nov[28] | 28 | 11 | 10 | 33 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 3 | |||
| Dialog | 20 Nov[29] | 28 | 10 | 10 | 34 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 11 | 0 | |||
| Dahaf | 20 Nov[30] | 26 | 8 | 11 | 32 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 11 | 3 | |||
| Shvakim Panorama | 15 Dec[31] | 20 | 14 | 12 | 34 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 0 | |||
| Teleseker | 19 Dec[32] | 30 | 12 | 9 | 30 | 12 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 0 | |||
| Dialog | 25 Dec[33] | 26 | 11 | 13 | 30 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | – | |
| Dialog | 31 Dec[34] | 27 | 16 | 9 | 32 | 11 | 3 | – | 5 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 2 | – | |
| Reshet Bet | 15 Jan[35] | 21 | 15 | 10 | 28 | 15 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Panels | 22 Jan[36] | 24 | 15 | 10 | 30 | 15 | 2 | 4 | – | 5 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | – |
| Dialog | 29 Jan[37] | 25 | 14 | 10 | 28 | 15 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | – |
| Midgam | 3 Feb[38] | 23 | 17 | 10 | 28 | 18 | 4 | 3 | – | 5 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 2 | – |
| Teleseker | 4 Feb[39] | 23 | 17 | 10 | 27 | 17 | 3 | 4 | – | 5 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 0 | – |
| Shvakim Panorama | 5 Feb[40] | 21 | 16 | 11 | 25 | 16 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 2 | – |
| Panels | 5 Feb[41] | 25 | 14 | 10 | 26 | 18 | 3 | 4 | – | 5 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 2 | – |
| Dahaf | 6 Feb[42] | 23 | 16 | 10 | 25 | 19 | 3 | 4 | – | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | – |
| Dialog | 6 Feb[43] | 25 | 14 | 9 | 27 | 18 | 2 | 4 | – | 6 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 2 | – |
 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | |
| Kadima | 758,032 | 22.47 | 28 | −1 | |
| Likud | 729,054 | 21.61 | 27 | +15 | |
| Yisrael Beiteinu | 394,577 | 11.70 | 15 | +4 | |
| Labor Party | 334,900 | 9.93 | 13 | –6 | |
| Shas | 286,300 | 8.49 | 11 | –1 | |
| United Torah Judaism | 147,954 | 4.39 | 5 | –1 | |
| United Arab List–Ta'al | 113,954 | 3.38 | 4 | 0 | |
| National Union | 112,570 | 3.34 | 4 | 0 | |
| Hadash | 112,130 | 3.32 | 4 | +1 | |
| New Movement-Meretz | 99,611 | 2.95 | 3 | –2 | |
| The Jewish Home | 96,765 | 2.87 | 3 | 0 | |
| Balad | 83,739 | 2.48 | 3 | 0 | |
| The Green Movement–Meimad | 27,737 | 0.82 | 0 | –1 | |
| Gil | 17,571 | 0.52 | 0 | –7 | |
| Ale Yarok | 13,132 | 0.39 | 0 | 0 | |
| The Greens | 12,378 | 0.37 | 0 | 0 | |
| Yisrael Hazaka | 6,722 | 0.20 | 0 | New | |
| Tzabar | 4,752 | 0.14 | 0 | New | |
| Koah LeHashpi'a | 3,696 | 0.11 | 0 | New | |
| Da'am Workers Party | 2,645 | 0.08 | 0 | 0 | |
| Yisrael HaMithadeshet | 2,572 | 0.08 | 0 | New | |
| Holocaust Survivors and Grown-Up Green Leaf Party | 2,346 | 0.07 | 0 | New | |
| Leader | 1,887 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 | |
| Tzomet | 1,520 | 0.05 | 0 | 0 | |
| Koah HaKesef | 1,008 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 | |
| Man's Rights in the Family Party | 921 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 | |
| HaYisraelim | 856 | 0.03 | 0 | New | |
| Or | 815 | 0.02 | 0 | New | |
| Ahrayut | 802 | 0.02 | 0 | New | |
| Brit Olam | 678 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 | |
| Lev LaOlim | 632 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 | |
| Lazuz | 623 | 0.02 | 0 | New | |
| Lehem | 611 | 0.02 | 0 | New | |
| Total | 3,373,490 | 100.00 | 120 | 0 | |
| Valid votes | 3,373,490 | 98.74 | |||
| Invalid/blank votes | 43,097 | 1.26 | |||
| Total votes | 3,416,587 | 100.00 | |||
| Registered voters/turnout | 5,278,985 | 64.72 | |||
| Source:Knesset Board of Elections | |||||
On 20 February, President Shimon Peres announced that Likud'sBenjamin Netanyahu would be given the task of forming a government.[44] This is the first time in which the president had not appointed the head of the largest party for this task, although there had already been several cases in which the Prime Minister was not the head of the largest party. Such a case occurred in the1996 elections, when Netanyahu himself waselected Prime Minister by direct vote, although his Likud party won fewer seats than Shimon Peres's Labor party. Peres's motivation in nominating Netanyahu was likely based upon the judgement that Netanyahu was in a better position numerically to put together a coalition. Likud's potential partners on the political right won more seats than the parties of the centre-left, who would more likely support Kadima.
Labor and Kadima initially stated they would not join a Likud-led government, although both parties scheduled further talks.[45][46][47] Polls at the time showed that the public supported a national unity government between Likud and Kadima, with either Yisrael Beiteinu or Labor as the third senior coalition member.[48]
On 16 March 2009, Netanyahu signed a coalition agreement with Yisrael Beitenu.[49] Following an extension of the coalition negotiation deadline from 20 March to 3 April 2009, he then signed a coalition agreement withShas on 22 March 2009,[50] and on 24 March 2009, he secured the support of the Labor Party, with Labor's central committee approving the deal by 680 votes to 507.[51] However, large parts of the party remained sceptical, accusingEhud Barak of only being interested in his own benefits under the deal.[52] On 25 March, the Jewish Home also joined the coalition.[53]
On 30 March, in accordance with the IsraeliBasic Law,[54] Netanyahu informed Peres and actingKnesset speaker,Michael Eitan, that he was able to form a government and the Knesset was set to convene on 31 March 2009, in order to vote on the government in a "Vote of Confidence" and to be sworn in thereafter.[55] The country's32nd government was approved that day by a majority of 69 lawmakers,[56] withUnited Torah Judaism joining the following day, expanding the coalition to 74 MKs.[57]
On 27 March 2012, the opposition party Kadima held leadership primaries, pitting its leader Tzipi Livni againstShaul Mofaz.[58] Mofaz won with 62% of the vote. Livni resigned from the Knesset in May 2012.[59]
Earlier, Netanyahu defeated his rivalMoshe Feiglin, winning 77% of the vote in the primaries for the Likud leadership held on 31 January 2012.[60]
On the eve of 7 May 2012, after weeks of deliberation and rumours, Netanyahu called for an early general national election and proposed 4 September as the election day, a notion which seemed inevitable—but in a dramatic turn of events, that very night, he announced that he had forged a unity government with the Kadima Party, effectively retracting the earlier call for early elections. The next afternoon, Likud and Kadima signed a coalition agreement placing Kadima's 28 Knesset members in the government, with Mofaz appointed as Active Vice Premier (in case of Netanyahu's absence) and Minister Without Portfolio. This agreement bolstered the government to the widest government in Israel's history, with a coalition of 94 seats and an opposition of only 26.[61] However, on 17 July, Kadima voted to pull out of the coalition—which, all the same, retained a majority of seats even without that party. The reduced coalition was now divided between nationalist groups, such asYisrael Beiteinu, andHaredi groups, such asShas, which are on opposite sides of the universal draft issue. This led some commentators to suggest that the coalition's complete break-up was imminent, and that new elections would take place by January 2013.[62]
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