Israel

Leaders of most of the right-wing parties sign pledge not to join any minority government that is established with support from the Arab parties.

The endorsement of Ocasio-Cortez, the newest star on the leftist stage, and Omar, a Muslim congresswoman who has been slammed for anti-Semitic tweets, suggests the Jewish candidate remained the Left's favored nominee.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's staff worries that Blue and White leader Benny Gantz would form a narrow government that would remove Netanyahu as prime minister, weakening his political strength ahead of a third election.

Yisrael Beytenu leader says his party will join a national unity government if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu breaks with the religious-haredi bloc.

With voter turnout expected to be low, highly motivated religious voters may provide PM Benjamin Netanyahu with the 61 seats he needs to form a government.

With polls showing neither the Right or Left will be able to secure a coalition, the Joint Arab List could supply a significant boost to the Left in September if it breaks its longstanding tradition of remaining outside the government. Such a deal, however, could also boost Netanyahu's chances of winning the election.

The attorney general's decision to publish a document detailing the counts on which PM Netanyahu is suspected comprised clear intervention in the democratic process by the judicial system.

The surplus vote-sharing deal Avigdor Lieberman signed with Benny Gantz has made it all too clear which side of the political map the Yisrael Beytenu chief belongs to. Luckily for Lieberman, this makes no difference whatsoever to his obedient supporters.

Both Netanyahu, who has promised to form a right-wing government, and Ayelet Shaked, who has committed to joining a government led by Netanyahu, are accusing each other of seeking to form a coalition with the Left. While Blue and White has rejected the possibility of joining a Likud-led government, Gantz's best hope may be to clinch a rotation deal with the current premier.

Most parties, including the Likud, haven't cracked the code of how to persuade the country's significant sector of Russian-speaking immigrants to support their agendas.