Blue and White cry foul to distract from Gantz’s inability to form a government. Their anti-democratic fighting over the Arrangement Committee proves that, to Blue and White, Israel and the current corona crises take a backseat to petty politics.
When taking into account the conservative-economic tendencies and the traditionalism found in large portions of the Arab public, it’s easy to imagine a conservative Jewish-Arab alliance. This needs to be the liberal-right’s primary mission this decade.
Blue and White, which has refused to sit in a Netanyahu-led government as a matter of principle, will soon face pressure to violate this promise and join him. It is a complicated dilemma.
The Joint Arab List platform does not leave a single Zionist principle unchallenged. Bringing its members into the government and allowing them to help shape the country would be a catastrophe.
“If you ask Israeli Arabs, they will say that part of their identity is Israeli. The younger generation feels more Israeli than Palestinian, but now they feel the state is accusing them of being traitors,” said Rodayna Badir, an expert on Arab society in Israel working on research at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
The more seats the Joint Arab List wins, the bigger an obligation the party’s MKs have to their constituency. And it’s hard to get things done from the opposition.
The rumors of Netanyahu's political demise were clearly premature, but the road to a coalition remains long and difficult.
The High Court of Justice cannot ignore the will of the people. Israeli lawmakers should not lend their support for any such move and the judiciary should make sure to steer clear of any attempt to drag it into politics.
The votes for the Likud were first and foremost an expression of support for PM Benjamin Netanyahu and a protest at the legal system and media enlisting to topple him.
PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s story would seem implausible in a movie: An election victory, then the defection of a partner on the Right, then a failure to build a coalition, then another election, a loss, and then election No. 3.