All of the take away points in the article are accurate.
Israeli Arabs voted in droves and, as 20% of the population, showed their strength. They won fair and square and should be proud of themselves.
However, since their Joint List includes the Israeli communist party ( Hadash), and the Muslim Brotherhood as well as other anti-Zionist groups, it is impossible for them to enter the government in a coalition. No non-Arab party will ally with them in part because then they would be allowed access to all intelligence and security secrets which would potentially harm Israel.
With all their votes, and having beaten Bibi fair and square, Blue and White still doesn't have the votes to make a coalition without the Arabs (61).
Bibi will not willingly depart. Like Trump, he is an egomaniac and liar/criminal. He will not annex any more land just yet because he is so weak that he is just on life support.
So we are in a holding pattern until President Rivlin figures out how to invite the group with the most likely possibility for a coalition to form a government.
If you truly want to follow all of this and are a glutton for details then head on over to https://www.timesofisrael.com/ where you will get the latest news on this election and its aftermath.
10
Maybe this is the start of the breakdown of nationalist, racist, crazydom. Trump, Bebe, Orban, Modi, Deuterte, Boris J. I hope so.
33
The truth is that the Israelis got outmaneuvered by the Arab minority. With Trump in the White House, Israel could've railroaded through new settlements, acquired new land, attacked enemies. I'm afraid that is very unlikely to happen now.
3
If Netanyahu has lost the elections, it will augur well for Israel, to the region and the world. Israel needs a new leader, with a different thinking and perspective. It is time, that happens.
21
Two strikes, Mr. Netanyahu. Game over. And not even promises of annexing the West Bank is going to save you.
But it will hopefully save Israel.
10
The idea of Liberman and Gantz forming a coalition so Liberman can finally be rid of Bibi reminds me of the joke about the guy on the deserted island with two synagogues- the one he goes to now and the one he’ll never set foot in again. Not the best way to form a government for the long haul but it solves the immediate problem.
2
I find it interesting that Trump has been silent about this election. No tweets, no remarks, etc. Where was his support for his is BFF, Bibi?
9
The voters have outrightly rejected Netanyahu's divisive politics.
11
There are two interesting takeaways from this election.
Firstly, the Israeli-Arab voters woke up and participated in the democratic process. This is a good thing. Whether they voted for the Joint List or Meretz/Democratic Union is not important. What is important that they voted.
Secondly, both Netanyahu and Liberman have announced that want a pure Zionist coalition devoid of the “dangerous Arab block”. Gantz is neither here nor there. This is a sad thing. The Joint List, according to Haaretz with 91% votes counted, will have 13 seats and running third. However, the “true Israeli parties” shun them.
There is not only an Israeli-Palestine problem but also with Israeli-Arabs, Israeli-Jews and Israeli-Haredim. We may have a national-unity government to keep the Arabs out. But then, the Joint List head becomes the Leader of the Opposition.
2
Can’t wait to see what misguided comments Bret Stephens will be making this weekend.
7
Very glad to hear Netanyahu has not won. Time for a big change in Israel is overdue.
5
He would have won if not for 3 million Latin Americans voting illegally. Bused in from Massachusetts. At least that's what people are saying. I'm not saying it. But people are.
19
Good, now he can be tried for his crimes.
10
The bromance between he and Trump must be waning.
3
He's also a crook, just like our president. Let's all never forget that.
10
The harshest critics of Israel are those who see it as a foreign imposition on an innocent population, an ethnic-cleanser, land-grabber, militaristic bully -- none of which is true. If you take a look at the Jews with whom Netanyahu, for instance, is most popular, it's the Mizrahim, who now make up ~ half the population, just under a million of whom were expelled, fled, or were evacuated from surrounding Muslim states after 1948.
Indeed, after 1948 it was the Ashkenazim who were most sure that now that the war was over, negotiations would ensue and the Arab World would accept the permanence of a Jewish state. And which Jews were most skeptical of this? Those with experience actually living in the Middle East: the Mizrahim, many of whom warned that a Jewish state would never be accepted here.
Much of the dislike of Israel among intellectuals stems from a kind of self-loathing, a dislike for their own culture and history, as Israel is seen, as I said, as a kind of European imposition. (Which, even if it were, so what? The Ottoman Empire had lost WW2, killed a couple million Christians in a genocide, and disintegrated. The fate of this backwater was trivial.) The one-state solution, once advocated by the likes of Edward Said, is a disaster. Whatever the election's results, the future seems quite bleak:
https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-eventually-there-will-be-one-state-between-the-mediterranean-and-the-jordan-1.6856140
4
Why is it that liberal Americans waste so much of their time and energy expressing opposition and contempt for Mr. Netanyahu?
It can’t be just because he likes expensive cigars. Those -- they would reason -- are bad for him and therefore permissible for him to smoke to his heart's content.
And It can’t be just because they are thoroughly enamored of the Palestinian cause.
The number of liberals who are currently volunteering to dig tunnels or man rocket launchers for Hamas is apparently small, as is the number of them who mail monthly checks to Hezbollah to support their cause.
So what can it be?
The answer -- so obvious that I hesitate to state it openly here for fear of offending Netanyahu's bashers -- is jealousy of his enormous success in gathering more legitimacy for Israel around the world, and by extension more legitimacy for Jews everywhere.
Look at his record. Israel is militarily dominant in its neighborhood, thriving economically, enjoying excellent relations
-- with a few exceptions -- with Republicans and Democrats in Congress and is fast gathering friends in the Middle East, Latin America, Eastern Europe and Asia.
Coming on the heels of the the horrendous synagogue attack in Pittsburgh and rising anti-Semitism in Europe and an Iran still committed to erasing Israel from the map of the world, this is hardly a time to be freaking out about cigars.
It’s been costing me a lot to mail him a box of expensive Havanas every month, but I’ve been happy to do it.
5
Mr. Netanyahu met today with other right-wing and religious parties. They empowered Likud to enter coalition negotiations as a bloc, a bloc that will block and prevent Mr. Gantz from setting up a coalition unless he includes the Arabs, and as of today, they are not interested.
They are obviously non-Zionist and some do not recognize the state they live in or that pays their salary. Mr. Gatnz's government in that case would last half an hour.
The assumption is that President Rivlin will offer Mr. Gantz first crack at forming a coalition. The assumption is that there is a good chance he will fail.
The key is Mr. Liberman (note-that is how he spells his name in English, not Lieberman:
https://knesset.gov.il/mk/eng/mk_eng.asp?mk_individual_id_t=214).
He will join only a unity government but without Netanyahu as head of Likud.
The ideal solution would be for the Likud to remove Mr. Netanyahu, not as far-fetched as it sounded two days ago and then Likud sans Netanyahu, Blue and White and Liberman. That is 72. Unity government.
Can this happen?
It should, but doubtful.
Look forward to 6 weeks of political mayhem.
4
Is this a foretelling of good things to come?
1
Benny Gantz opposes the two-state solution, supports the illegal settlements (wants to "fortify" them), and also opposed Obama's nuclear deal with Iran, yet in America, we call him a "centrist" only because his opposition is a open racist.
This is Israel.
Israel is far from a liberal democracy unless you're a Jew (and a white one at that). Calling Israel a liberal democracy is like calling 1950's Mississippi a liberal democracy. It's ridiculous. Just because they may have fired Bull Connor (temporarily) won't end the misery.
Israel is on a path to self-destruction and AIPAC will try to pull the United States into the conflagration. Meanwhile, we are totally ignoring our security needs in the Pacific. Our bizarre relationship with Israel has cost the United States trillions and distracted us from our real adversaries.
9
Any one it seems who is associated with #45 has bad times ahead, and in Netanyahu's case they are well deserved. Some people just never learn, you play with fire, you get burnt!! In the case of #45 its like being in a volcano.
7
One can say whatever they want. However, Netanyahu is as corrupt. There's a desert swamp in Netanyahu's back yard, just like his bff in the US.
Benny needs to win, and bring back some class to their PM's office!
3
All despots shall fail. Put, Kim, Bor, etc. I predict that they'll all be gone early in the 22nd century. Something to live for.
2
Israel is losing big if it throws out Bibi- he led Israel to prosperity with the Tech Boom and investments in IDF SIGINT which fueled Unit 8200 as the incubator for Israeli tech start-ups. He reformed monetary policy and banking and created a stable economic engine for growth. Iran, Hizbollah and HAMAS are still existential threats - nothing changes - except now, you may have a less experienced leader with the clout to deal with the idiot Trump and the the new Stalin, Putin. Bibi surely had faults as do all leaders but at this critical juncture wherein Israel is literally in year 6 of the Israeli-Iranian War (undeclared war of attrition), there is great danger in changing ship captains in the middle of the storm. I was no fan of the Bibi's marriage of convenience to the Haredi parties or of their policies in general to exempt their children from national service and promote a lifestyle which does not foster national wealth and secular cohesion - but then it was always a marriage of convenience for Likud. Mr. Gantz has big shoes to fill and it is a pretty stressful job to be in charge of preventing a second holocaust when surrounded by cold peace treaty partners in Jordan and Egypt and overtly hostile forces in Lebanon, Syria, Gaza and parts of the West Bank. Removing Bibi won't change a thing but it will lesson the gravitas of Israel's leader in Washington and Moscow.
1
let's hope this bodes well for the US next year and we throw out bibi's twin's tRump.
7
Let's hope that Netanyahu's reign is over.
6
I sincerely hope Netanyahu's days as PM are numbered.
5
What about Trump he handed our govt over to Bibi and still no victory. What about Jared the prince of America bIbi's little buddy was that enough. Boris and Bibi on the way out and perhaps Trump will be out of power too next year him and his sharpie back to the private sector or Moscow.
6
Like Trump, like Johnson, like Orban, like Bolsonaro, Netanyahu is a disgrace. And a catastrophe.
A shame on all those voters who put those dangerous men in positions of power !
6
Looks like his bromance with Trump is really paying off.
3
Looks like his bromance with Trump is really paying off.
Why doesn't this shameless man - and his equally shameless wife - just go away . . .
4
Finally. perhaps some good news in the world. Perhaps Netanyahu and Trump can go live on a small island off the coast of Iran.
4
Here is hoping the Israeli's have more sense than Americans and give Bibi a bounce right out of office and into a prison cell. We have our own criminal here in the US.
280
Quoting trump (something I rarely do) re Netanyahu... “lock him up”. While much smarter and more articulate than trump (who isn’t), it’s time for Bebe to go. Any worthwhile peace process can’t occur while Netanyahu is in office supporting more settlements. He’s as crooked as his pal trump, who also clearly deserves being locked up... after defeat in 2020.
201
@Howard Beale
On Dec. 2, 1947, just days after the UN General Assembly passed a resolution to partition historic Palestine into Jewish and Arab-ruled sections, the Ulama or chief scholars of Sunni Islam of Al-Azhar University in Cairo– the leading university of the Arab World– issued a fatwa calling on the world’s Muslims to launch a Jihad to destroy the incipient Jewish state. It was reiterated by the Ulama, in April 1948, days before the Egyptian Army and three other Arab armies attacked Palestine, giving the campaign a “religious imprimatur.” The fatwa was reissued later that year.
“It was clear the Arabs had lost the war,” Morris said, but reissuing the Fatwa signaled it was meant “to stand for future years, for future generations, for whatever bout there will be against the Jews.”
As noted in his book and repeated at the conference, Matiel Mighannam, a Lebanese Christian woman who headed the Arab Women’s Organization in Palestine, affiliated with the Arab High Command, told an interviewer: “The UN decision has united all Arabs as they have never been united before, not even against the Crusaders.” She added that a Jewish state had no chance to survive and “All the Jews will eventually be massacred.”
http://www.theseniortimes.com/1948-was-a-holy-war-for-arabs-historian-says/
As long as most Palestinians are devout Muslims (85% of Palestinian Muslims want sharia law.) and as long as the Jewish State controls even one square inch of land, peace is impossible.
4
One thing that is definitely certain is that Israel is full functioning Democracy and not an Apartheid country as many NYT commentators routinely assert.
Kind of tough to be apartheid state when the very minority that is supposedly being discriminated against is allowed to vote and in this case is now the third largest party in Israel's parliament (ruling body).
16
Those who make glib comparisons between Bibi Netanyahu and Donald Trump need to remember that unlike Trump, in order for Netanyahu to stay in the Prime Minister's office, he needs to have the support of the other parties that make up his coalition. He also faces the possibility of having to run for office in a new election if a no-confidence vote is passed by a mere majority of the members of the Knesset. So while Trump enjoys the luxury of being able to remain in office without the support of a majority of the voters or Congress, Netanyahu does not. If Netanyahu is able to stay on as Prime Minister for another term it will be because Israelis want him to.
8
Like his alter ego and hero, Donald Trump, Bibi is immune from going to jail while Prime Minister (president in Trump's case), so it is win at all costs. Netanyahu talks of peace like Trump does about all deals being easy, but it is pieces for Israel and the Palestinians who now enter their nearly fourth generation of tent cities and losing ground to bulldozers from another version of God.
When the premise of anything is that it is "God-given", as we hear from some people about the 2nd Amendment, and miracles In ancient times in Israel, it is impossible to set aside separate stairways to heaven, and focus on steps to peace.
10
@Ed Marth
In 1948, Palestinians could have declared independence. Instead, they asked for union with Jordan so when Jordanians were attacking Israel it was also Palestinians attacking Israel. The IDF had to go into West Bank to silence the guns. That's how the occupation began.
Unlike other occupiers (China, Russia, Morocco, Turkey) Israel offered to end the occupation in return for a peace treaty. Israel is still waiting.
The occupation is necessary to prevent Palestinians from murdering Jews. If Palestinians were willing to live in peace with Israelis, the occupation wouldn't be necessary.
If Israel were to end the occupation of the West Bank today, Palestinians would fire rockets & mortars from the West Bank just as Palestinians fired rockets & mortars from Gaza after Israel pulled out of Gaza.
5
Looks like two decisions by Netanyahu related to our country were counter productive at the polls. Leaning to close to Trump rather than to our country's traditional values, and the three Congresswomen travel fiasco. It happens to all of them, they stay in power for too long and start to misjudge reality.
15
Netanyahu has inertia on his side. That means that he may remain in office despite his lost parliamentary support.
2
Anything that puts Netanyahu out of power is good news, but there's something not quite right about Avigdor Lieberman's manouevering.
His party, which is plenty extremist itself, would welcome the West Bank annexations recently promised by Netanyahu, in fact land-grabbing is pretty much what the party's name Yisrael Beiteinu means.
He makes a very unlikely partner for anyone on the left, and especially for any coalition containing Arab parties.
I find myself wondering what's the real cause of the Lieberman-Netanyahu rift? I suspect it has more to do with the proceeds of corruption than with religious scholars' military service.
It's a shame that Blue-white and the smaller left parties couldn't form a majority with the Arab parties alone. It would be so great to see Israel run by a coalition of Israeli Arabs and liberal Jews.
15
Bibi, along with Trump, is responsible for the decline in bipartisan American support for a secular, democratic, prosperous Israel -
this began with his partisan attack on Barack Obama - attacking the President of the nation that was and is Israel's most sincere and ardent supporter.
One down, Two to Go.
7
I’m sceptical to see how this shakes out; but if Netanyahu loses it would be good for Israel and good for the world.
13
There are no unalloyed blessings here, but one can only hope that the nightmare that has been Netanyahu's prime ministership is at an end.
Without wanting to be either premature or overly simple, Netanyahu has much in common with his comrade in arms, Trump. Both are vicious connivers whose only priority seems to be to retain their hold on power and authority.
Oddly, the parallels extend further: once out of office, both are likely to face substantial criminal charges and both may well wind up in jail. 'tis a consummation devoutly to be wished ... even if it may not happen.
8
It seems the increased Arab turnout was in part in response to Bibi's demagogic attackes on that community. I hope that we see the same response from people of color, especially Hispanic people, n the US in 2020.
15
I keep thinking that if Trump had not campaigned so vigorously for Netanyanhu, he might have won. It looks as if an endorsement from Trump is poison.
8
@Whole Grains - From your lips to God's ears.
2
“.... neither he nor his main rival, the former army chief Benny Gantz, a centrist, won enough votes to claim an outright majority..”
This is why democracy as a form of governance doesn’t work!
1
My fingers are crossed. Nothing could be better for the world than the departure of Netanyahu, except maybe the departure of Trump.
9
The self-interest of Netanyahu and Likud are now, clearly, at odds. If, as seems likely, he loses his post as PM in the negotiations of the next month. he will face serious corruption charges without immunity protection. So he will fight to remain in power while, without him, Likud might form part of the next government under Lieberman's offer of a broad coalition with his own party and Blue and White with Benny Gantz as the new PM.
But thus far, Likud's other leaders remain Bibi's loyal lap-dogs; it appears that they must suffer a damaging defeat, two elections in a row, before they can muster the courage to replace him as their leader.
There is an uncanny similarity here with Republican Party in the US. Trump is clearly harming their future electoral prospects but their elected members in Congress remain his uncritical defenders entering the 2020 elections. Are they blind to the lasting damage he is doing to their party?
It seems that opponents must defeat their leaders in elections before today's conservative parties can rise up to resist their own take-over by populist demagogues of the far right.
8
@Wally the issue is the Haredim ultimately.
Post-Bibi, Likud will go the way of Labor. Too many divided interests will perpetually leave them without a leader.
Ultimately, Israel has a very secular tradition, statistically, it rates higher than most of Europe with percentage of population who considers themselves secular (41%). They just have a very extremist end as well. However, as Israel continues to boom economically (and likely will for the next decade), as more Haredim & Israeli Arabs integrate into this growth, the extremist rhetoric will slow down. Its natural for people to want to leave their tribe for a better lifestyle, even the Haredim wouldn’t mind more money.
2
This political obituary of Netanyahu is premature. The relative success at the polls of Lieberman's "Yisrael Beiteinu" and of the Arab "Joint List" made Netanyahu even more dependent on the support of Haredi parties. The most likely outcome of this election is another stalemate, with yet another election being called, and with Netanyahu staying on as the caretaker Prime Minister for the time being. The second, also somewhat plausible, option, is that Netanyahu will make a deal with Lieberman, offering tangible concessions on the secular/religious issues such as the Haredi draft, civil marriage, etc. Shas and United Torah Judaism may be willing to compromise on these issues since that's probably the only way they can stay in power in longer term. The third, fairly unlikely, possibility, is a grand coalition between Likud and Blue&White, with Netanyahu personally being out of the government. I don't really see that happening, but one never knows. The fourth, possible but least likely, outcome is a minority government by Blue&White together with Lieberman and possibly some of the leftist parties. For such a government to survive, it would need the Joint List voting in favor of the confidence motion. Could happen but seems unlikely. The most probable outcome is still the first option: another election being called, with Netanyahu staying on as an interim PM.
5
@Berto Collins not a chance. Lieberman would throw away everything now to sign onto a government with Haredim. He is the kingmaker, and will get what he wants. In fact, the most likely outcome is Likud (without Bibi) joining with Blue & White. It’s not like Likud doesn’t have its own people with ideas of one day being PM. Gideon Sa’ar has been the rumored successor for 10 years. Him or Nir Barakat both have the qualifications for future PM.
The grand bargain that is likely to play out is all charges are dropped against Bibi in agreement for him to dropout of politics. Likud & B&W agree on rotating PM, join with Lieberman and can figure a way to not allow the country to be held down by a minority population who doesn’t contribute anything to the country.
Blue & White isn’t a real party, it’s very likely they won’t last long. Gantz is not a natural PM, he’s likely to build a government thar could be stable without Bibi, but also could fall apart because he lacks the political savviness, which is okay. B&W just represents a stand against one man who has too much power.
1
Netanyahu undermined institutions and sought foreign help (Trump). If he loses, he faces prison. His personal concerns come first, and he is doing what it takes.
Sounds familiar? The difference is that his opponents are not pulling any punches, whereas the Democrats are timid.
20
"Israeli Arabs make up around 20 percent of the voting population, and they showed up on Tuesday in larger numbers than expected — a huge departure from five months ago."
Arabs with voting rights?
A rare thing possible in the only democracy in the middle east.
17
It is far past the time for Netanyahu to go. His neo monarchy has caused the Palestinians, United States, and rest of the modern world more than enough trouble.
28
@Nature Voter He hasn't done great things for Israel, either. He's cut from the same cloth as our dear leader---he stokes people's fears and racist tendencies, bringing out the worst in everyone. He belongs in jail; so does Trump.
1
The southern Israeli towns of Sederot, Ashdod, and Ashkelon voted for Bibi in smaller numbers than they did in April and in years past.
These are places where the alarms go off frequently to signal an attack.
Yes, Bibi won in these 3 places but the magic has surely worn off.
After all, are they any safer now than they were a decade ago?
Change is coming
39
I hope Netanyahu's failure is an omen for Trump's future re-election prospects.
95
@Liz You and about 200 million of us. As for the Israelis, it's up to them to choose their leader. Same goes for the U.K. -- even if it's easy for us to wish for the U.K. to remain in Europe (meaning in the E.U.) and to vote Boris Johnson out. But we do have the power of the vote to get rid of Trump. A national embarrassment and stain on our reputation that we can begin to erase in November 2020.
21
Waiting for the tweet that reads " Israeli election was rigged", the Democrats are meddling to oust Bibi because they know he is a very very good Prime Minister and a very very good man.
23
@ALN Uh, no he’s not.
1
I hope that the Blue and White party headed by Beni Gantz will be able to form a government that will include the Arab party Haresheima Hameshutefet ("the List of Partners"). They are a minority that deserves to participate. I totally disagree with the declaraction of Benjamin Netanyahu ("Bibi") that including them in a government would present a danger to Israel. I think his cow-towing to the Ultra Religious party is a danger. In addition, I am in favor of legislation that would limit the number of years that any person may serve as prime minister.
126
@BJM
Israeli Arabs voted in droves and, as 20% of the population, showed their strength. They won fair and square and should be proud of themselves.
However, since their Joint List includes the Israeli communist party ( Hadash), and the Muslim Brotherhood as well as other anti-Zionist groups, it is impossible for them to enter the government in a coalition. No non-Arab party will ally with them in part because then they would be allowed access to all intelligence and security secrets which would potentially harm Israel.
Your hope will never be realized.
2
Good; maybe there is some joy in Mudville after all.
30
Netanyahu like Trump is a con man and a criminal. Both of these deeply unpleasant men are a real threat to Democracy and peace and Prosperity throughout the world.
I hope Netanyahu gets defeated in the election. If he isn’t and he carries though on his election threat to annex the West Bank, he only justifies Putin’s Annexation of the Ukrain and will give China all the justification it needs to invade and annex Taiwan.
It will also accelerate the rapidly diminishing credibility of the United States in the wider world.
Just wait until the United States needs the support of its Allies for something critically important like military action, cooperation in the next financial crisis.
By that time Trump and Netanyahu will have destroyed all of the goodwill the world has felt for the United States.
Needless to say the consequences for ALL of us will be bad.
67
Great sales pitch - vote for me to keep me out of jail. Kind of like our own dear leader. Who knew democracy extended to electing someone out of accountability, consequences and prison and evade laws that apply to the rest of us.
Says a lot about the voters - both in Israel and 80%+ of Republicans who still fully support their criminal leaders in spite of everything we know. You can shoot someone in the West Bank or 5th Ave and not lose any voters.
It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World! Really!
40
If the Israelis reject Netanyahu and the British turn away Johnson, we Americans are going to look like even bigger fools if Trump is elected for a second term. Even as we tout our technological wonders and the “best medical care in the world” and all the other fantasies we’ve been taught about America, the rest of the world will finally confirm that we are a surprisingly backward and ignorant country.
64
I'm trying to imagine how trump will respond if Netanyahu goes down. Which will it be? The vote was rigged? That Obama is to blame? Or, that it doesn't matter, because he, trump, never knew Netanyahu very well anyway? Or, that the great people of Israel should have voted for the man trump has done so much to help succeed, but he, trump, will always be the best friend Israel has ever had, even though it's people refuse to acknowledge how much he, trump, has done for them?
60
@Julie
He already responded today by distancing himself from Netanyahu and saying the relationship is with Israel and whomever in PM, not just Bibi.
No honor amongst thieves.
5
@Julie - probably all of the above, over the course of multiple tweets.
2
@simon sez
His tune may change tomorrow--as if often does--if Bibi manages to hang on as PM.
3
If Netanyahu isn't Prime Minister can he be indicted? If so, would the indictment disallow his candidacy? If so, would he still be an attractive candidate for another do-over? Would anyone want to join a coalition headed by an indicted PM?
I'm no expert, but it sounds like only an outright Likud victory makes Netanuahu's position tenable, and that hasn't happened.
4
@Rich c
The Israeli AG has announced that he intends to indict him. There appears to be no restriction under Israeli law that would prohibit the indictment of a sitting PM
4
Aren’t their elections as disastrously corrupt like ours ?
An Electoral College or Supreme Court to decide a winner?
Is their election process like ours where the person with the most votes loses if the GOP deems an by decree?
6
Neither country has corrupt elections. Both follow the procedures clearly spelled out in their Constitutions. Our Constitution requires election through the electoral college. You may not like it but there are valid historical reasons for its existence.
3
@Jack Kinstlinger The “valid historical reasons” for both US and Israel is racism.
1
Nice to see Arab parties hold a new position of power in the Knesset. Fully counter to those who doubt Israel's democracy.
My hope for Israel is that this result reverses the nationalist turn of the current government, and leads to a more pluralistic society where Arabs, religious Jews, and the non-religious, do not feel marginalized.
46
Oh, please let this be an auspicious sign that democracies can after all be saved from dictators in the guise of national "leaders." When one thinks of Netanyahu's interference in our country via his puppets from Trump to a Republican Congress (to wit, Paul Ryan and Mitch M), it ranks with the manipulations of Putin and the Saudi Crown Prince. We are seeing the waves of discontent also in Great Britain relating to Boris Johnson. And God knows, this nation is aghast and demoralized by the present occupant of the Oval Office. I say to the people of Israel: Please keep it up. We in America need hope that we, too, can weaken and eventually be ridden of our own thuggish, unethical, and corrupt Donald Trump.
131
@Kathy Lollock
Netanyahu may be corrupt and dishonest but he is not a dictator. Not even a wannabe dictator like Trump. We can all hope for positive changes in Israel, the USA, Britain and elsewhere. But we all should stick to objective facts and try not to paint in too broad strokes.
5
@Kathy Lollock
Your post was a ray of hope to me. I hope you are right and this national nightmare will end with a blow out blue tidal wave election.
9
@Kathy Lollock Populism/Nationalism/Hate wave is crashing. Boris Johnson in UK in trouble. Netanyahu in Israel in trouble. Trump in America in trouble. Trump is at 38% approval. Vote blue no matter who.
3
Lieberman and the Joint Party had better put down their opposition to each other and join a Gantz led coaliation for the good of Israel and the best way to get the peace process moving forward again.
The Likudniks continue to cave in to the ultra Orthodox minority for without them they can't govern. Another set of Lieberman conditions is much better for Israel. They include the mandadory IDF service of the Ultra-Orthodox sects, recognition of civil marriages, commerce and transport service on the sabbath and the education of ultra-Orthodox children in secular schools. In the end, Israel can be a Jewish state open to all with rights for all as wel. Sadly, that is not the case today.
50
There is no peace process. There is a program of steady elimination of Palestinians. But the growing power of Arab Israelis is going to make the one-State solution happen eventually.
15
@John F There is no evidence to support your statement, in fact the Palestinian population has increased five-fold since the 1960's. Arab influence in the Knesset will never result in a one state solution. Aren't 22 Arab countries enough for you? The truth matters, especially in such a controversial issue as the Arab Israeli conflict.
1
One state solution is the worst of possible outcomes. It will lead to the expulsion of Jews from Israel within two generations. Cannot be allowed.
3
You have to give voters due credit. Mr Netanyahu tried every trick in the book. Some unethical and borderline illegal to win the premiership. But his gamble failed. Every leader should know when to step back and step down and give Others a chance instead resorting to every trick to stay in power.
Time to say good bye to Bibi ? Good luck with the pending indictment.
77
It is to be hoped that Israelis have come to the realization that the people most bent on stoking their fears can be the real danger.
As I hope Americans will realize that the GOP's incessant fearmongering are leading the country into violence, worse than anything a Central American child could ever conceivably do.
44
@Christine
I am sure every Israeli appreciates advice from people 6,000 miles away, safely in the middle of the US, telling them which dangers they experience are "real."
2
Israel's politics are exhausting. One hopes the country finally rejects Netanyahu's Zionism, bigotry, and hatred.
But a country put together for a people who identify by religion is always going to have to fight against the intolerance that often accompanies religion. Catholicism went through it. And it is evident in the Christian Conservative south today. Arab countries have it in spades.
It doesn't make for expansive thinking.
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@History Guy Absolutely. The one thing all of the more orthodox sects of religions have in spades is dogma and authoritarian, guilt ridden polices. That includes the big three, Christianity, Judaism and Islam. My fondest hope is that eventually, all three will see the light as to how religion has been used to manipulate people and gain political power. It has always saddened me that so many are so rigid and so isolationist about their religions. I do hope Israel sees it and ends the authoritarianism of Netanyahu. My fingers are crossed for realistic and pragmatic policies and people. I wish the same for our government as well.
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@History Guy
The wedding of Christianity or Judaism with nationalism is lethal.
Arthur Miller
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@History Guy
Israel wasn't put together by people who identify by religion. The founders of Israel were secular, many of whom were atheists. What brings Israelis together is not religion, but the common history(filled with persecution, that drove the creation of a safe homeland), the common culture, and nowadays patriotism(like in the US). Half of Israeli jews are secular, 40% Atheist, and the figure is the lowest in history because religious people have more children.
4
Let's hope he pays for at least a portion of his crimes.
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I've never understood boycotting elections as a form of protest, particularly when they are reasonably fair. It doesn't really delegitimize them; all it does is hurt your own cause.
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@John It is a statement that the group does not accept the election and the options being offered in that election. It is more a statement to the rest of the world that this group does not accept the election/available options. In the case of the Israeli Arabs, they will never be a majority government, the only hope they have is negotiating a deal in a coalition government. Being faced with that kind of fate, if they cannot negotiate a favorable deal at coalition, then what is the point of going to the polls? They become a statistical non-entity. The only way the Israeli Arabs will become a statistical significance is if Israel annexes the occupied territories and grant those people citizenship--which we know will never happen. The Arab birth rate is higher than the Hebrew, they would just be bred out of their country--historical irony if you think of it.
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@John
In Canada (and perhaps elsewhere) , we can go to a voting place and decline our ballot. This becomes part of the election record, and makes a public statement that "none of the candidates deserve my vote". It's much more effective that staying away from the voting place on election day.
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@Kelly
Oh, cool, thank you for this tid bit of info.
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Here's hoping this is the start of a trend away from the election of bullies. They don't make good world leaders. Netanyahu and Trump have proven that bullies do not make good leaders.
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Exactly!
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@Vanessa Hall Let's not forget Boris Johnson in the bully camp.
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May be a warning sign that Trump's support might not yield the results candidates would expect..
30
I truly wish Israel good luck. I hope they are able to form a coalition that is reflective of the center right pluralistic country that they are, rather then the nutty, Netanyahu led kleptocracy reflected in Netanyahu and the religious parties. We in the US have to face the fact that most Israelis are right of center on some issues and decidedly left on social issues. Without the religious parties, there is a possibility that Israel could solve some of its more vexing issues, and without the kleptocracy, it is possible that people would listen to proposed issues from Israel’s perspective. Right now, no one trusts Netanyahu, who is governing only for the gain of himself and his family.
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Maybe this is a foreshadowing of what will transpire in 2020 for our own elections. That corruption, blatant disregard for the law and rules of the constitution seem to mirror the prime minister's antics of late. It's time to get any and all of these egocentric rulers out of power for good and shine a light of hope for our fragile futures.
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From my American Reform Jew’s perspective, it is repulsive that a small, ultra-Orthodox party can hold the future of Israel (and Palestinians) in its hands. Theologically speaking, I am not even recognized as a Jew in Israel thanks to the shadow Theocratic government there. And these guys are going to determine the next Prime Minister and then hold his policies hostage to their extremist values? Ugh
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@Kaneohe Wahine I think you misunderstood. Avigdor Liberman will be the kingmaker with his party's 8 seats. He is right-wing on the Palestinian/Israeli issue, but very left wing when it comes to religious issues. He wants to force a unity government that excludes both the Arab and Ultra-Orthodox parties.
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@Kaneohe Wahine
" Theologically speaking, I am not even recognized as a Jew in Israel"
I don't know if you are a convert to Reform Judaism or if you were born to a mother who is or was Jewish, but unless you converted to Reform Judaism or your mother wasn't Jewish, Orthodox Jews, including Israel's Chief Rabbinate, will recognize you as a Jew. I've met many American Reform Jews who mistakenly assume that since Orthodox Jews don't recognize the validity of Reform conversions or accept patrilineal descent, that Orthodox Jews reject all self-identified Reform Jews; which is not true.
In terms of your eligibility to immigrate to Israel under the Law of Return, people with one Jewish grandparent are eligible and so are non-Orthodox converts if they can demonstrate that they have been affiliated with a recognized non-Orthodox Jewish community or congregation for a sufficient period of time. Such people do face obstacles in matters such as marriage, divorce and burial, however, which is controlled by the (Orthodox) Rabbinate for Israel's Jewish population.
3
This is bad for Trump; wave has crashed and people are waking up to these guys crimes
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Whatever else you want to say about Israel, you cannot criticize the government and the leaders there for not holding frequent elections to secure the advice, consent and wishes of the Israeli people.
As soon as they hold one, they’re ready to hold another one.
Not like the U.S. where we have to wait four years.
I read the Times every day and have a hard time remembering the last time Palestinians held an election, let alone a free and a fair one.
Maybe that's because they rarely, if ever, hold one.
Maybe, just maybe, that’s the reason why they are in the trouble they are in.
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@A. Stanton If all you read everyday is The New York Times, it's not surprising that you've forgotten that the Palestinians have been under military occupation for the last 52 years. Voting is not a high priority for a government that answers to the military of a foreign occupying power, has no contiguous territory to govern, and lacks the resources even to govern the splotches of territories it calls its own. Maybe it's time to diversify what you read.
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@A. Stanton
The Problem with the last election in Palestine was (not unsimilar to the one in Egypt), that we, the west, didn't like the result.
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@A. Stanton Totally agree. You never hear it from talking heads or pundits, but democracy and true freedom of expression (eg. press) and thought have a way of casting sunlight on a society(s)' problems. You may not like trump, Netanyahu, or other right wing politicians, but at least Israelis hold their feet to the fire with an electoral process. How do we really know what the Palestinians of the West bank feel if they don't hold elections and have a free press? Paradoxically these same political leaders blaming the occupation for the lack of free elections and expression want it to continue because it maintains them in power by maintaining the undemocratic status quo in the West Bank. This goes even more so in Gaza where a Palestinian protester set himself on fire, and where there were 4 days of protest in Gaza city -- not against Israel, but against Hamas! But none of the so-called leftists or NGOs really interested in human rights will call this out -- probably for fear of being ostracized arrested, if not killed. It is amazing how much undemocratic, totalitarian countries get from the left (think Venezuela)-- meanwhile, no one gives Israel credit for its vibrant democracy. They wont admit it, , but in this way, Israel truly is a light unto the nations, even to the US -- lets hope what has happened to Netanyahu is an indication of what will soon happen to Trump!
8
One thing to note is the degree to which Netanyahu embraced and even imitated Trump. Considering how talented and skilled Bibi is politically, that he chose to imitate a far less talented and skilled politician says a lot (and nothing good) about the current state of Israeli democracy. He embraced division and attacks on the press and rule of law, as I note here: https://realcontextnews.com/bibis-trump-show-how-israeli-prime-minister-netanyahu-wins-by-imitating-the-donald/
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@Brian Frydenborg
As much as I dislike bibi, I must say that he was behaving like this before trump got elected.
1
This is chaos.
They should adopt our model of letting a minority party rule regardless of how many votes they received.
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@Matthew Weflen Your comment reveals ignorance regarding the political system in Israel. In fact, when no party gets a majority, the party with the most (non-majoirty) votes must reach out to other parties to particiate in a governments, where the other partiers' leaders are actually members of the cabinet. This is not as it is in the United States, contrary to your comment. Do us all a favor and know something about the subject before making an antagonistic remark out of ignorance.
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@Matthew Weflen
I laughed. I just think most people are too exhausted to get the sarcasm.
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@robert
Take a deep breath and reread the comment you replied to. It was a joke.
28
Too bad. Donald Trump just filled the NSA post. Bibi could have applied. And gotten it.
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@Red Sox, ‘04, ‘07, ‘13, ‘18 Not to lateBiBi will be outta job soon
Is the murky wave of populism beginning to recede? let's hope so!
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My head is spinning from all of the possible combinations. This type of system inherently prevents one party from dominating everything and gives smaller voices a place at the table. Government by coalition! What a novel idea! Kind of democratic, isn't it.
It's messy and convoluted but that's what democratic rule creates. We have efficient rule where winner takes all and squashes the opposition to the point of stacking the deck against them through gerrymandering and voter suppression. The result is a government sold to the highest bidder. Kind of American, isn't it.
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@Bruce Rozenblit
Pluses and minuses on both sides. On the whole, the American system is better as long as voting is free for all. And there is a strong, independent judiciary to enforce laws.
The system works but slowly in many important aspects. Abolishing slavery, passing and enforcing civil rights took decades. Same with gun control ... it will eventually pass but when is the question.
Unfortunately, climate change works slower but but may be irreversible if we move slowly as we typically do in contentious issues. And as with the slavery, we could pay an enormous price along with the rest of the world.
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@Bruce Rozenblit
It's parliamentary something the US is not.
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@Bruce Rozenblit. But there is a major flaw in the Israeli system as well. It gives tremendous power to small minorities who demand and receive inequitable advantages and resources in “payment” for joining in a coalition.
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Maybe people in a democracy don’t want to be ruled by a crook, his crooked wife, and their crazy son. Just a thought. And a hope.
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@NJLATELIFEMOM
We have to acknowledge that about 35% or so in this nation actually do "... want to be ruled by a crook, his crooked wife, and their crazy son..."
I am with you hoping people wake up, but that base is simply set in concrete.
3