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- Israel’s current ruling coalition was unable to agree on a budget for 2021. That is why Parliament is dissolved.
- New elections are expected in March, the fourth in two years.
Only last May did an alliance between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, leader of the right-wing Likud party, and Defense Minister Benny Gantz of the Blau-Weiss center alliance begin. From the beginning there was tension between the two.
After no agreement was reached on a budget for next year that night, parliament dissolves and he is automatically re-elected. That’s what Israeli law says. Gantz should have assumed the post of head of government from Netanyahu in fall 2021. So it is possible that the budget dispute served mainly to prevent the office from being dishonest.
Netanyahu is also called the widowmaker by the coalition partners.
Inga Rogg, NZZ Jerusalem correspondent, agrees. Netanyahu really can’t rule with anyone else. That is why coalition partners often call him the widowmaker. “That is one thing.” The other thing is the corruption process against him, which will enter the hot phase in February. “He tries for everyone. the media drive the process completely or at least influence the judiciary.
However, he believes that the coalition would have broken sooner or later. Because: “Two very unequal partners have joined here.” Netanyahu has been prime minister for eleven years, “and Gantz is a newcomer to politics who led the army, but daily political life is different from that of an army.”
Legend:
Benny Gantz (left) and Benjamin Netanyahu: The distrust between the two was great from the beginning. They recovered in the spring and formed a unity government. Now the coalition is crumbling again.
Keystone
At the end of March there will now be another election, for the fourth time in two years. The last elections resulted in a stalemate, so there were no clear majorities. Whether Gantz will compete again is questionable at this point, says Rogg. “Their poll numbers are currently in a handful of seats.” It may not exceed 3.25 percent of the vote.
Then the political center of Israel would be orphaned. “However, nothing will change about all this polarization that is expressed in the elections,” the correspondent is convinced. “The election campaign, the fourth in two years, will be about: Netanyahu or not Netanyahu.”
Election campaign amid the crown crisis
Netanyahu has a solid foundation. His followers worship him almost as a saint, as “the savior of the nation.” It is also presented as such, but the question will be the mobilization of the voters.
“The election campaign is taking place in the midst of the health crisis and Israel is heading into the third wave.” The great vaccination campaign is beginning, then Rogg. “But that will not solve the basic problem.” Many voters may stay away from the polls out of disappointment or anger.
