JERUSALEM 鈥� Israel on Wednesday appeared to be
Candidates across the political spectrum called for unity and healing, and a little known Islamist lawmaker emerged as the politician most likely to choose the country鈥檚 next prime minister. Mansour Abbas said he was 鈥渘ot in the pocket of anyone鈥� and vowed to listen to offers from anyone willing to talk to him.
Even embattled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had previously pledged not to partner with Abbas, said he would not rule out anyone as a potential governing partner.
鈥淚 disqualify no one,鈥� Netanyahu told supporters early Wednesday. 鈥淎 stable government for the state of Israel, that is what the times require. ... We must not, under any circumstances, drag the state of Israel to new elections.鈥�
Tuesday鈥檚 election, like its three recent predecessors, was seen as a referendum on Netanyahu and his polarizing leadership style.
For supporters, Netanyahu is the man who is uniquely qualified to lead the country through its numerous political, diplomatic and security challenges. His opponents see him as a liar and egomaniac who has pushed the country into repeated election cycles in hopes of producing a parliament dominated by supporters who can grant him immunity from his ongoing corruption trial, which resumes April 5.
Once again, the nation appeared to be hopelessly divided. After a protracted period that has included the coronavirus pandemic, a highly successful vaccine rollout, four diplomatic breakthroughs with Arab countries and a change in the White House, Israelis again voted based on their feelings toward Netanyahu.
With nearly 90% of the votes counted Wednesday, both Netanyahu鈥檚 supporters and his opponents appeared to fall short of securing the 61-seat majority in parliament required to form a government.
Netanyahu鈥檚 Likud party and its ultra-Orthodox and far-right allies were projected to control 59 seats 鈥� even if the small Yamina party were to join it. Yamina鈥檚 leader, former Netanyahu ally turned critic Naftali Bennett, has not said which way he will go.
Netanyahu鈥檚 opponents were poised to finish with 61 seats. Even if that projection is upheld by final official results in the coming days, there is no guarantee the anti-Netanyahu parties could form an alternative government. The bloc includes a range of parties 鈥� Arab and Jewish, religious and secular, dovish and nationalist toward the Palestinians 鈥� that have little in common beyond their distaste for Netanyahu.
鈥淎ssuming all parties and politicians keep up their pre-election promises and the results remain unchanged, then we鈥檙e heading toward a fifth election,鈥� said Yohanan Plesner, president of the Israel Democracy Institute, a Jerusalem
Already, there were signs of this taking place. On Wednesday, just days after Netanyahu vowed never to
In a live interview on Channel 13 TV, Hanegbi called Abbas a 鈥渕oderate鈥� and said it would be an 鈥渋njustice to Israeli society鈥� if he did not get into the Knesset. He told another channel that he considered Abbas a potential coalition partner.
Other members of Likud, which in past campaigns had depicted Arab citizens as a potential fifth column, reacted angrily to Hanegbi鈥檚 comments. But given his close ties with Netanyahu, it appeared to be a sort of trial balloon.
Abbas basked in his newfound fame on Wednesday, appearing on TV screens and radio programs throughout the day. He said he would consider offers from both Netanyahu and his chief opponent, Yair Lapid, to join a future coalition, possibly even as a Cabinet minister.
He said he would listen to their proposals for addressing problems in Arab society, including poverty, violence and discrimination, and then make up his mind.
鈥淲e will wait patiently. We are not rushing anywhere,鈥� he told Channel 13. "We want to avoid a fifth election, but not at any cost.鈥�
Whether Abbas can make history and lead an Arab party into an Israeli coalition remains uncertain.
Netanyahu鈥檚 likely coalition partners would include the Religious Zionist party, whose leaders espouse racist anti-Arab views. Some members of the anti-Netanyahu camp have also said they would not share power with Abbas.
鈥淲e are far from seeing Abbas as a Cabinet minister,鈥� said Thabet Abu Rass, co-CEO of the Abraham Initiatives, an advocacy group that promotes coexistence in Israel. 鈥淗owever something new is taking place. There is more legitimization of Arab voters.鈥�
Abu Rass said the new discourse is about making Israel's Arab minority, long confined to the political fringe, as partners in decision making. 鈥淭he question is how to do it and with whom to do it,鈥� he said.
The Israeli election commission was set to begin counting an estimated 450,000 absentee ballots, a higher-than-usual number due to the many people with the coronavirus or in quarantine.
Once those votes are tallied and certified, the country鈥檚 figurehead president, Reuven Rivlin, will begin a lengthy process of consulting with party leaders before designating one of them to form a new coalition. That choice is the leader whom he deems has the best chance of being able to put together a government.
Given the deep divisions, this process is expected to take weeks and will require at least one party to compromise its basic values.
In addition to luring Abbas, Lapid, for instance, might try to reach a deal with ultra-Orthodox rivals from Netanyahu鈥檚 camp. Both sides might also try to poach renegade lawmakers from the other side, all in a frantic effort to gain or maintain power.
And a fifth election, despite the deep opposition voiced across the political spectrum, remains a strong possibility. In the meantime, Netanyahu will run a caretaker government with limited powers.
鈥淩egardless of whether Netanyahu forms a government or doesn鈥檛, the deadlock will continue to paralyze the Israeli government as long as Netanyahu remains at the helm,鈥� wrote Yediot Ahronot columnist Nahum Barnea. 鈥淭his is bad news for every Israeli.鈥�
Josef Federman, The Associated Press
