If Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fails to form the next government, Yamina party leader Naftali Bennett may turn to Yesh Atid Chairman Yair Lapid to cobble together a new center-right coalition, Channel 13 News reported on Tuesday.
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Citing sources close to the Yamina party, Channel 13 News reported that Bennett is demanding to serve first as prime minister in a rotation deal with Lapid and disproportionate influence in key legislative decisions.
The Yesh Atid leader has reportedly offered to go second in the rotation deal, despite the fact that his party won 17 seats in the March 23 election, while Bennett's faction only earned seven.
Lapid, however, is holding firm against one of Bennett's key demands that he be given veto powers over legislation that counters his right-wing views, a move the so-called "change bloc," which is seeking Netanyahu's ouster, stringently opposes.
Bennett has also threatened to negotiate a deal with Netanyahu, whose path to the premiership is still unclear. The two are set to meet later this week for further negotiations.
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Netanyahu, who currently has the support of 52 lawmakers – well short of the 61 needed to form a majority coalition – was tasked first with forming the next government by Israel's President Reuven Rivlin, who lamented the country's current political stalemate.
The president also stipulated that the decision was not easy for him "on a moral and ethical basis," as Netanyahu has three indictments hovering over him in an ongoing graft trial.
i24NEWS contributed to this report.
