Netanyahu and Eisenkot claim mandate to form Israeli government

Benjamin Netanyahu and Gadi Eisenkot have separately asserted their right to form the next Israeli government after Tuesday's parliamentary elections produced no clear victor, intensifying political uncertainty in the country.

Neither candidate secured an outright majority in the Knesset, Israel's 120-seat parliament, forcing both to pursue coalition deals with smaller parties to reach the 61-seat threshold needed to govern. The outcome reflects deepening divisions within Israeli society over key policy issues and governance priorities.

Netanyahu, who has previously served as prime minister, argued that his political bloc retained sufficient support to command a governing coalition. Eisenkot, a former military chief of staff, similarly claimed he could assemble a viable coalition government.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog will formally task one of the candidates with forming a government in the coming days. That figure will have up to 42 days to negotiate agreements with potential coalition partners before presenting a government to parliament for approval.

The protracted negotiations could prove complex, given fragmentation across Israel's political spectrum. Multiple parties spanning the ideological spectrum hold seats in parliament, requiring extensive compromise and deal-making to establish a stable governing majority.

Photo: Gadi Eisenkot, former chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces, in a campaign portrait, 2026. Yahav Trudler (Yahav Studio) via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).