2021 Israel elections Archives

‘Positive atmosphere’ at Bennett, Netanyahu meeting as PM scrambles to form coalition

Thursday's meeting marked the first time in several years that Bennett was invited to the PM's residence, reportedly due to a feud between the Yemina leader and Sara Netanyahu.

April 9, 2021

Ultra-Orthodox party reportedly tells Netanyahu: If you can’t form government, we’ll support someone else

The report claims the United Torah Judaism party has told Netanyahu that this is his last chance or they pull their support.

April 8, 2021

Netanyahu embarks on mission to form new government

Prime minister has tough mission to hammer together a coalition government before the 28-day deadline expires.

April 7, 2021

Israel’s 24th Knesset sworn in amid uncertain future

President Reuven Rivlin cautioned, 'If we are not able to find a new model of partnership ... our national resilience will be in real jeopardy.'

April 7, 2021

A hard look at Israel’s United Arab List, ‘ideological brother to Hamas’

Could the Right form a government with the support of a Hamas-supporting, anti-Zionist party?

April 6, 2021

Rivlin nominates Netanyahu to form new government

The Israeli president announced Tuesday his selection of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to form a new government.

April 6, 2021

After being courted by both sides, Islamist ‘kingmaker’ backed no one

Party head Mansour Abbas says his faction 'will come with a positive attitude to any candidate' the president tasks with forming a coalition.

April 6, 2021

Netanyahu leading race to get most nominations for PM; Rivlin fears new election

After 'Change Bloc's' New Hope party abstained, the likelihood increased that the prime minister will get first dibs at forming a government.

April 5, 2021

Gantz endorses Lapid to form new government in Israel

Following meetings with all parties elected to the Knesset, Reuven Rivlin will decide who gets first crack at forming a new government.

April 5, 2021

Netanyahu returns to court for corruption trial’s evidentiary stage

Netanyahu will meanwhile appear in Jerusalem District Court for the start of the evidentiary stage of his trial.

April 5, 2021

Leading nationalist organizations urge Netanyahu, Saar, Bennett to reconcile, form right-wing government

"The good of the country needs to come first, not personal emotions and mutual hatred," said Matan Peleg, CEO of Im Tirtzu, which initiated the move. But it looks like their pleas are falling on deaf ears. B...

April 4, 2021

Israeli political scramble: Plenty of talks, but few deals on the horizon

Party leaders try to maximize support in desperate attempt to form government, stave off fifth elections.

April 4, 2021

Top rabbi: Arabs better coalition partners than the left

Kanievsky reportedly said Arab parties, unlike left-wing parties, are not trying to “turn everyone secular."

April 2, 2021

Likud fury as Israeli president suggests he may skip over Netanyahu

Senior Likud members slam Reuven Rivlin for saying he may skip over Prime Minister Netanyahu to form a government.

March 31, 2021

Arab-Israeli kingmaker leaning toward Netanyahu, source says

It’s unclear if Netanyahu’s right wing partners - especially the Religious Zionism party - will agree to Abbas' demands.

March 31, 2021

Israeli election scenarios: Possible paths to a majority

With neither side having a decisive mandate, several leading combinations are emerging for a coalition government.

March 30, 2021

Election stalemate: Israeli parties search for winning combinations

With no clear winner, several possible combinations are emerging as Israel's political parties burn the midnight oil wheeling and dealing.

March 30, 2021

Potential kingmaker Abbas to call for Arab-Jewish unity, cooperation

In a historically unprecedented move, Abbas has expressed that his party is willing to cooperate with Zionist parties in a coalition

March 30, 2021

Netanyahu opponents bickering over who gets to form government

Lapid, Bennett both eyeing prime minister's seat as parties haggle over how to form a majority coalition government.

March 29, 2021

Israelis turn to mystery ‘double envelopes’ in hopes they’ll break the stalemate

Final 450,000 'double envelopes' could break the stalemate. At least, that's the hope.

March 25, 2021

Avigdor Liberman pulls surprising support from Druze community

Liberman, leader of the Israel Beiteinu party, scored high among the Druze for several reasons.

March 25, 2021

Analysis: Israel still can’t make up its mind about Netanyahu

Despite his accomplishments, half the country is determined to oust the prime minister. But a possible way out is both a societal breakthrough, as well as a source of potential trouble.

March 25, 2021

With 93% of votes counted, deadlock is the only certainty for Israel

Deadlock prevails as tallying resumes in Israeli election.

March 25, 2021

Israel’s election is over: What comes next?

A long-established schedule of legally required steps now comes in to play on the way to the next government ... or new elections.

March 24, 2021

Change in Israel election results rattling Netanyahu’s Likud party

The possibility of an Arab party supporting a Netanyahu coalition government is splitting Likud members who support or decry the scenario.

March 24, 2021

Dawn of a new approach? Arab Ra’am party says win is ‘green light to pragmatism’

Ra’am’s surprise win could signal a new era in Israeli politics, in which an Arab party partners with the right -- a previously unimaginable scenario.

March 24, 2021

Deadlock redux: Long night for Netanyahu as hopes dashed in overnight counting

After a starry-eyed night for the Likud and its supporters, they woke bleary-eyed to a reversal of their fortunes.

March 24, 2021

Potential kingmaker Bennett coy on next steps

Instead of expressing his intention to commit to one side or the other, he pledged to 'do only what’s good for the State of Israel.'

March 24, 2021

Arab party counted out on election eve could now play spoiler to Netanyahu

United Arab List (Ra'am) is now expected to get five seats in the Knesset, weakening Netanyahu's chance for a right-wing coalition.

March 24, 2021

WATCH: ‘Blackmail,’ ‘instability’ will plague narrow coalition, says Likud chairman Danny Danon

Former Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon warned that the Knesset will continue to be mired in political deadlock if Benjamin Netanyahu can only form a 'narrow coalition.'

March 24, 2021

Israelis flocked to beaches, parks on election day

Election day was unseasonably hot and many Israelis hit to the country’s beaches, enjoying a return to normalcy with corona restrictions eased.

March 24, 2021

Vaccine gave Netanyahu a shot in the arm at the polls

Israel's world-leading vaccination campaign may have given Netanyahu the booster shot he needed to win at the polls.

March 24, 2021

An overwhelmingly right-wing Knesset any way you slice it

Channel 12 News predicts that 76 of the Knesset’s 120 members will come from right-wing parties.

March 23, 2021

‘LOVE YOU’: Victory for Netanyahu, right-wing, Israel’s exit polls say

Israel's three main TV stations predict Netanyahu could gain a 61-seat coalition. 'A long and dramatic night is expected.'

March 23, 2021

Smoke trails from rockets fired by Palestinian terrorists from Gaza into Israel, on February 24, 2020.

Netanyahu escorted out of restaurant in Beer Sheba as Gaza rocket falls near city

The incident triggered comments from Netanyahu's political opponents, apparently hoping to sway voters at the 11th hour.

March 23, 2021

WATCH: How did Israelis vote? What triggered their choices?

Voter confessions: ILTV News took to the streets to find out just how Israelis were planning to vote and what influenced their choices.

March 23, 2021

Elections committee fears fraud accusations as corona-friendly voting begins in Israel

Due to the pandemic, more polling stations than ever before will be operating throughout the country.

March 23, 2021

Knesset Guard preps for ‘Capitol riot’ scenario after Israeli elections

Security agencies are preparing for several Election Day scenarios including a mass attempt to storm the Knesset.

March 23, 2021

Biden wants two-state solution, but no Israeli party appears to support idea

Even the Arab parties wouldn't give the nod when queried.

March 23, 2021

Israelis cast their votes under unprecedented coronavirus protocols

Special polling stations to allow 15,000 infected Israelis and tens of thousands in quarantine to cast their votes.

March 23, 2021

WATCH: ‘We beat Covid,’ Netanyahu declares

As the number of new cases of coronavirus in Israel decreases dramatically and restrictions are lifted, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu celebrates the country's success.

March 21, 2021

Tel Aviv to Mecca: Netanyahu says direct flights to Saudi Arabia on the horizon

'We will have direct flights for Muslim Israeli pilgrims from Tel Aviv to Mecca,' Netanyahu told Army Radio.

March 21, 2021

Netanyahu: ‘I’m going to turn Israel into a world superpower’

'We are on the verge of great successes with the economy, with peace, in technology. I’m going to turn Israel into a world superpower.'

March 21, 2021

WATCH: Ahead of election, tens of thousands protest against Netanyahu

Despite Netanyahu's clear lead in the polls, tens of thousands of Israelis protested across from his residence in Jerusalem on Saturday night.

March 21, 2021

WATCH: Israeli ex-pats fight for the right to vote

Israelis who live abroad are fighting for the right to vote in Israeli elections.

March 21, 2021

‘Try me, I’ll win,’ says Netanyahu about corruption trial as elections loom

Netanyahu said he opposes canceling his corruption trial, saying he prefers to defeat the charges in court.

March 20, 2021

Despite ties, UAE stays clear of Netanyahu election maneuver

'The UAE will not be a part in any internal electioneering in Israel, now or ever,' Emirati presidential adviser Anwar Gargash tweeted.

March 19, 2021

Analysis: The differences between Israel’s 2020 and 2021 elections

If Netanyahu cannot form a coalition, it’s unlikely that another candidate would fare any better, although one should always expect the unexpected in Israeli politics.

March 18, 2021

Left-wing bot army trying to affect Israeli election outcome, report says

Left-wing organizers do not deny the existence of their fake news campaign against Prime Minister Netanyahu.

March 17, 2021

Poll shows key to right-wing government in Bennett’s hands

If Bennett's Yamina party joins Netanyahu, the right-wing bloc will have 61 seats necessary to form a coalition.

March 14, 2021

Wife Sara controls Netanyahu? Prime Minister threatens suit as social media claim goes viral

Only 12 days before the election, video appears alleging Sara has a contract giving her power over her husband and government appointments.

March 11, 2021

Poll: Far-left Meretz party for first time won’t pass election threshold

If the poll is correct, it will be the first time that the party fails to obtain the minimum number of seats to enter the Knesset.

March 3, 2021

Israeli party’s attack ad featuring Hitler sparks controversy

In the fictitious conversation, one member of the group sends a picture of Hitler with a heart emoji.

February 21, 2021

Israeli Arab running for Knesset banned after calling for Jewish State’s destruction

Israel's attorney general had opined that Ibtisam Mara’ana should not be barred from the Labor list despite her hateful comments.

February 17, 2021

Latest poll: Netanyahu with slim majority for right-wing coalition, left weakening

Netanyahu's Likud Party the most popular with six weeks to elections, left-wing Meretz Party might be shut out of Knesset.

February 10, 2021

Arab party spokesman banned from Knesset after assaulting Jewish candidate

In the incident that occurred Thursday, Za’atara is seen hounding Ben Gvir and then physically blocking him.

February 8, 2021

Netanyahu hires ex-Breitbart journalist as campaign chief

'Netanyahu already saved the country during the initial health and economic crisis of this pandemic,' Aaron Klein said in June 2020.

February 3, 2021

Caroline Glick: Maher Bitar and Israel’s ideological elections

US President Biden’s choice to name an anti-Israel political activist as senior director for Intelligence at the National Security Council may place Israel in a precarious position.

January 31, 2021