Israeli President Taps Gadi Eisenkot to Form Government Following Deadlocked Election

Israel’s president has selected Gadi Eisenkot, a leading rival of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to attempt to form a new government after a deadlocked election left neither candidate with a clear path to power.

Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving leader, is struggling to retain office after his religious-nationalist coalition lost its parliamentary majority in the October 27 vote, though it remains the largest bloc in the Knesset.

Eisenkot, a former military chief of staff, has ruled out partnering with Arab parties, even though their backing would secure him a parliamentary majority. Nevertheless, Arab leaders—angered by what they describe as the racist policies of Netanyahu and his far-right allies—nominated Eisenkot first, giving him the highest number of endorsements.

“President Herzog has invited Gadi Eisenkot to the President’s Residence, where he will be mandated to form the government tomorrow,” said a spokesperson for President Isaac Herzog. The president’s largely ceremonial role includes nominating a candidate to build a coalition following elections.

In a post on X, Eisenkot wrote: “Now is the time to form a national emergency government. I will do everything I can to ensure we are worthy.”

Weeks of intensive negotiations are expected following Eisenkot’s nomination. He has 28 days to form a government, with a possible 14-day extension.

Possible routes to power include forming a minority government supported by Arab parties on key votes, building a coalition with ultra-Orthodox parties he has previously avoided, or establishing a unity government with Netanyahu.

Analysts consider all three options unlikely to succeed. If Eisenkot fails, another candidate may attempt to form a government; if that effort also fails, parliament can nominate a different candidate. The entire process carries a deadline of roughly 100 days, after which a new election would be held if no government is formed.

Likud secured the most seats of any single party with 27 in the 120-member Knesset, but Netanyahu’s broader religious-nationalist coalition won just 53 seats, short of the 61-seat majority required to govern.

Eisenkot’s Yashar party became the second-largest party with 21 seats, while his four-party coalition—spanning centre-left to right-wing Jewish-led factions—won 48 seats combined. Two parties representing Israel’s Arab minority secured an unprecedented 19 seats.

The 66-year-old son of Moroccan immigrants, Eisenkot would become Israel’s first prime minister from the Mizrahi community—Jews with roots in the Middle East and North Africa.

Reserved and media-shy, Eisenkot entered politics in 2022. He briefly served in Netanyahu’s wartime cabinet after Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel before returning to the opposition.

From the opposition, he has publicly criticized Netanyahu’s leadership, including the management of the military campaign in Gaza, and has vowed not to serve in a government with him.

His public standing is also tied to the personal price his family has paid since 2023: a son and two nephews were killed fighting in Gaza.

On the campaign trail, Eisenkot emphasized his security credentials, citing his “Dahiyeh doctrine” of responding to attacks with disproportionate force—a strategy he employed as a commander during Israel’s 2006 war with Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Eisenkot has also denounced settler violence against Palestinians, which has surged since 2023 and strained Israel’s relations with Western states. He opposes Netanyahu’s far-right coalition partners Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, both of whom have faced sanctions from some Western countries for inciting violence against Palestinians.

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