Political officials were saying Tuesday evening that President Reuven Rivlin will not grant Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu an extension to his mandate to form a government when the 28 days he was allotted for the task run out.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
According to the officials, if by the end of the 28-day mandate, which ends at midnight on May 4, Netanyahu is unable to form a government, Rivlin will not allow him a 14-day extension as he is allowed to by law, as the extra time is unlikely to help.
Without either a government or an extra 14 days to form one, Netanyahu will have no choice but to hand the mandate back to the president. He is not in a position to dissolve the Knesset and hold another election, because that would require the support of 61 MKs, which Netanyahu does not currently have.
If the mandate is returned to the president, Rivlin will most likely hold a round of consultations with representatives of all the factions in the Knesset, after which he will mostly likely tap Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid to form a government. Lapid would have the same 28 days to complete the task that Netanyahu was originally government.
Should Lapid also fail to form a government, Rivlin will be forced to hand the mandate over to the Knesset. The parliament would then have 21 days to submit a written request to Rivlin to assign the mandate to another MK, who would have 14 days to form a government. The request would need the support of 61 MKs.
If the Knesset's pick to form a government were also to fail, Israel would hold another parliamentary election.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
