Thoughts on upcoming Israeli elections

Naomi Cohen-Shields

After abruptly firing cabinet members Yair Lapid and Tzipi Livni last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the dissolution of the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, and for the creation of a new government. Consequently, Israel has scheduled new elections for the new government, settling on March 17, 2015.

As prime minister, Netanyahu has the power to call for elections earlier than they are scheduled.

According to Jewish History teacher Aaron Bregman, one of the major causes of the early elections “was the Jewish State bill that was put through Knesset a few weeks ago.”

The Jewish State bill is a controversial piece of legislation that legally defines Israel as a Jewish State. Those opposed to the bill believe that such action would put Israel’s democratic principles in jeopardy.

“Many people are arguing that Bibi actually did it purposefully because he knew that the coalition was breaking,” Bregman said. “He knew that this would be the straw that would break the camel’s back.”

And it did. With elections three months away, analysts are already speculating about the results. The electoral threshold was recently raised, meaning that it will be more difficult for smaller parties to gain representation in Knesset, and talks of new alliances and mergers between parties are already underway.

The parliamentary system that Israel employs requires that the party with the most seats — currently Likud — form a coalition that comprises a majority of the Knesset. With  the previous coalition broken, elections must be held so that a new one can be formed.

“This could certainly change the outlook in terms of what Israel will do,” Bregman said. “Polls show that [the elections] could create more of a right wing coalition than there currently is. So I think that they’re going to see a more hawkish Israeli government than they might be used to at this point in time.”

In the new elections, the Likud party would have to attain a majority in Knesset in order to keep Netanyahu as prime minister.

“The political analysts, in America, in the Jewish community abroad, and in Israel, are all talking about this election as a referendum on [Netanyahu],” Academic Dean Aileen Goldstein said.