Politics of Israel

This article is about the political parties and conditions in Israel. For the political structure of Israel, seeIsraeli system of government.

Politics in Israel are dominated byZionistparties. They traditionally fall into three camps, the first two being the largest:Labor Zionism,revisionist Zionism,andreligious Zionism.There are also several non-ZionistOrthodoxreligious parties and non-Zionistsecularleft-winggroups, as well asnon-Zionistandanti-ZionistIsraeli Arabparties.

Early history (1948–1977)

During the1948 Palestine war(part of theIsraeli–Palestinian conflictand more widely theArab–Israeli conflict), theState of Israelwasformedin thePalestine region,thenunder British rule.Until the1977 Knesset election,Israel was ruled by successivecoalition governmentsled byMapaior the Mapai-dominatedAlignment.From 1967 to 1970, anational unity governmentincluded all of Israel's parties except for theCommunist Party of Israel's two factions. In 1968, theIsraeli Labor Partyformed from three earlier left-leaning parties, but was defeated in the 1977 election byMenachem Begin's centre-to-right Revisionist ZionistLikudbloc(then composed ofHerut,theLiberalsand the smallerLa'amParty). The Likud formed a coalition with theNational Religious Party,Agudat Israel,and others.

Prime ministers and governments since 1996

Netanyahu I (1996–1999)

Further information:Twenty-seventh government of Israel

In the1996 Israeli general election–the first direct election of aprime ministerin Israeli history–Likud leaderBenjamin Netanyahuwon by a narrow margin, having sharply criticized the government's peace policies for failing to protect Israeli security. Netanyahu subsequently formed a predominantly right-wing coalition government publicly committed to pursuing the Oslo Accords, but with an emphasis on security first and reciprocity. His coalition included the Likud party, allied with theTzometandGesherparties in a single list; three religious parties (Shas,theNational Religious Party,and theUnited Torah Judaismbloc); and two centrist parties,The Third WayandYisrael BaAliyah.The latter was the first significant party formed expressly to represent the interests of Israel's newRussianimmigrants. The Gesher party withdrew from the coalition in January 1998 upon the resignation of its leader,David Levy,from the position ofForeign Minister.

Barak (1999–2001)

Further information:Twenty-eighth government of Israel

Office of thePresident of Israelin 2007

On 27 May 1999,Ehud BarakfromOne Israel(an alliance of Labor,MeimadandGesher) was elected Prime Minister, and formed a coalition with theCentre Party(a new party with centrist views, led by former generalsYitzhak MordechaiandAmnon Lipkin-Shahak), the left-wingMeretz,Yisrael BaAliyah, the religious Shas and the National Religious Party. The coalition was committed to continuing negotiations; however, during the two years of the government's existence, most parties left the coalition, leaving Barak with a minority government of the Labor and the center party alone. Barak was forced to call forearly elections,the only prime ministerial elections not held alongside Knesset elections.

Sharon (2001–2006)

Further information:Twenty-ninth government of IsraelandThirtieth government of Israel

On 17 February 2001, elections resulted in a new "national unity" coalition government, led byAriel Sharonof the Likud, and including the Labor Party. This government fell when Labor pulled out, and new elections were held 28 January 2003.

Based on theelection results,Sharon was able to form a right-wing government consisting of the Likud,Shinui,the National Religious Party and the National Union. The coalition focused on improving Israeli security through fighting against terror, along with combating economic depression. However, when Sharon decided on his2004 disengagement plan,which included evacuation of Israeli settlements in thePalestinian territories(particularly theGaza Strip), the National Union and National Religious Party withdrew from the coalition. Sharon's attempt to add the Haredi United Torah Judaism to the coalition drove Shinui out, and forced Sharon to bring the Labor Party back into his coalition.

Since not all Likud Knesset members supported Sharon's disengagement plan, he still lacked a clear majority in the Knesset. Apparently calculating that his personal popularity was greater than that of the party, Sharon pulled out of the Likud on 21 November 2005 and formed his own newKadimaparty. He was joined only days later by Shimon Peres, who pulled out of the Labor party to join Sharon in a bid for a new government. This represented a cataclysmic realignment in Israeli politics, with the former right and left joining in a new centrist party with strong support (unlike previous centrist parties in Israel, which lacked the popularity Kadima now seemed to enjoy).

Olmert (2006–2009)

Further information:Thirty-first government of Israel

On 4 January 2006 Prime Minister Sharon suffered a massive stroke and went into acoma,eventually dying in 2014.DesignatedActing Prime MinisterEhud Olmerttook power, becoming interim Prime Minister 100 days after Sharon's incapacitation. He did not become full Prime Minister due to elections being held in March and a new government being formed.

Following theMarch 2006 elections,which leftKadimaas the largest party in the Knesset, Olmert became prime minister. He includedLabour,Shas andGilin a 67-seat coalition. In November 2006,Yisrael Beiteinu(11 seats) also joined the government, but departed from the coalition in January 2008. Faced with internal opposition due to mounting corruption charges, Olmert announced that he would not seek reelection in thenext electionsheld in February 2009.Tzipi Livniwon theSeptember 2008 Kadima leadership elections,but failed to form a new coalition government.

Netanyahu II (2009–2021)

Further information:Thirty-second government of Israel,Thirty-third government of Israel,Thirty-fourth government of Israel,andThirty-fifth government of Israel

On 31 March 2009 theKnessetapproved the appointment of Benjamin Netanyahu as Prime Minister, despite Kadima winning more seats than Netanyahu's Likud. The new government took office on 1 April 2009. Netanyahu was re-elected in 2013 after his party, nowLikud Yisrael Beiteinu,won the most seats inthat year's election.The new coalition included theYesh Atid,the Jewish HomeandHatnuahparties, and excluded ultra-Orthodox parties. In2015,Netanyahu was re-elected for a third term, forming a coalition with the Jewish Home,Kulanu,Shas andUnited Torah Judaism.

Following theAprilandSeptember2019 elections, no party was able to amass a governing majority, leading to fresh elections. In2020,Netanyahu was able to form a government withBlue and White,Labor,Gesher,Shas, United Torah Judaism,Derekh Eretzand the Jewish Home.The government dissolved in December, triggering fresh elections in2021.

Bennett (2021–2022)

Further information:Thirty-sixth government of Israel

An agreement was made byNaftali BennettandYair Lapidin early June 2021 to form a coalition government that would replace the long-standing government led by Netanyahu. On 13 June 2021, Knesset voted and approved the appointment of the new catch-all coalition government, and on the same day Bennett was sworn-in as the new prime minister of Israel. The government dissolved in June 2022, leading Lapid to serve as Prime Minister until the formation of a new government on 29 December 2022.

Netanyahu III (2022–present)

Further information:Thirty-seventh government of Israel

After the2022 Israeli legislative election,Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud formed a government with Shas, United Torah Judaism, theReligious Zionist Party,Otzma YehuditandNoam.The government was sworn in on 29 December 2022.

Political conditions

Further information:Israeli system of government

TheKnesset(Parliament of Israel)

Golda Meir,Prime Minister of Israel from 1969 to 1974, once joked that "in Israel, there are 3 million prime ministers".The particular version ofproportional representationused, in which the whole country is a single constituency, encourages the formation of a large number of political parties, many with very specialized platforms, and often advocating the tenets of particularinterest groups.The prevalence of similar seat totals among the largest partiesmeans that the smaller parties can have strong influence disproportionate to their size. Due to their ability to act askingmakers,the smaller parties often use this status to block legislation or promote their own agenda, even contrary to the manifesto of the larger party in office.

Israel political system with President of the State, Executive branch and Legislative branch

The 2013Freedom in the Worldannual survey and report by U.S.-basedFreedom House,which attempts to measure the degree of democracy and political freedom in every nation, ranked Israel as theMiddle EastandNorth Africa's only free country.(However, the organization's 2015 and 2016 reports also listedTunisiaas free.)TheEconomist Intelligence Unitrated Israel a "flawed democracy"in 2022.

Political parties and elections

For other political parties, seeList of political parties in Israel.An overview on elections and election results is included inElections in Israel.

Main article:2022 Israeli legislative election

Compared to other countries, the number of parties contesting Knesset elections is relatively high considering the population size. This has resulted in a fragmented legislature where smaller parties have representation in the Knesset and no party has the 60+ seat majority needed to form a Government on its own.

This system also allows fringe parties which hold views outside of the mainstream political and public consensus to have representation in the Knesset. Examples of these are theHaredireligious parties, parties that represent the national religious or limited agenda parties such asGil,which represented pensioners in the 2006 elections.

Other political groups

Israeli politics are subject to unique circumstances and often defy simple classification in terms of thepolitical spectrum.Groups are sometimes associated with the political left or right, especially in international circles, according to their stance on issues important to theArab–Israeli conflict.

Political right

See also:Far-right politics in Israel

On thepolitical right:

• Gush Emunim,Israeli nationalists advocating Jewish populating (a.k.a. settlement) of Judea & Samaria, a.k.a.West Bank(and formerly of theGaza Strip), and opposing evacuation of any of these communities. (Largely defunct)
• Yesha Council(Yeshabeing a Hebrewacronymfor "Judea Samaria Gaza" ), a loose formation of local office-bearers in theOccupied Territorieswho represent the interests of theIsraeli settlersin the West Bank.
• Almagor:an association ofterrorvictims.
• Professors for a Strong Israel

Political left

The Peace Kids,a mural affiliated with the Israeli left inTel Avivdepicting PalestinianHandalaand IsraeliSrulikembracing one another

On thepolitical left:

• Peace Nowsupports territorial concessions in the West Bank and was critical of government's policy in withdrawing from Lebanon after the 1982–1986 war and the subsequent withdrawal fromSouth Lebanon.
• Geneva InitiativeandThe People's Voice(HaMifkad HaLeumi), two peace initiatives led by prominent Israeli and Palestinian public figures that surfaced in 2004. These initiatives were based on unofficial bilateral understandings between the two sides, and offer models for a permanent agreement.
• Histadrut(also "HaHistadrut" or "The Union"; short for "the General Union of the Workers in Israel" ), an umbrella organization for manylabor unionsin Israel. In the past, was identified with the different forms of the Israel Labor party; nowadays, the chairman of the Histadrut isArnon Bar-David.The former chairmanAmir Peretzbecame head of the socialistOne Nationparty, which eventually merged into Labor in 2004, which Peretz led from November 2005 to June 2007.
• Several radical left-wing organizations calling soldiers torefuse servicein the West Bank and Gaza; the best known areOmetz LeSarev( "Courage to Refuse" ) andYesh Gvul(There's a limit/border).
• Ma'avak Sotzialisti(Socialist Struggle) campaigns againstprivatisationand the worsening conditions faced by workers and young people in Israel.

Left-leaning politics are traditionally supported by Israel's academic, cultural, and business elites, as well as its security establishment.

Political centre

Thepolitical centre(represented in theKnessetbyYesh Atid,and in the past represented by Kadima, Giland Kulanu) combines the Israeli right's lack of confidence in the value of negotiations with the Palestinians and the Arab states with the assertion of the Israeli left that Israel should reduce the Israeli presence in the areas of theWest Bank.As a result, the political centre supports unilateral actions such as theIsraeli West Bank barrierandIsrael's unilateral disengagement planalongside the continuation of militaristic actions (such as theselective assassinationpolicy) as a means of fighting against terrorism. Economically, the centre is liberal, supportseconomic liberalism,and has acapitalistic approach.Until recently, the political centre in the Knesset was relatively small—it never won more than 15 seats on average and centre parties tended to disintegrate within less than two terms (for example:Democratic Movement for Change,theCentre Partyand Shinui). Other centre parties split up into factions which joined one or both of the two major parties, likeYachad(Ezer Weizman's party, which merged into theAlignmentin 1987) andTelem(Moshe Dayan's party, which eventually split up between the Alignment and Likud). TheIndependent Liberalswhich had spit from the Liberals eventually merged into the Alignment.

Parties which do not identify themselves as political right or political left are also considered to be centre parties. For example:The Greens,which focuses on environmental subjects and so far has not been able to enter the Knesset.

Interest groups

• The agriculture lobby, which seek to receive subsidies and tax relief on water.
• The lobby for promoting the status of women, afeministgroup which co-operates with the Knesset.
• Or Yarok( "Green Light" ): an organization devoted to reducing road accidents inIsraelthrough education, enforcement, improvement of infrastructure and the establishment of a national task force to research the problem and formulate a long-term plan to reduce car accidents.

Others

• Notablerabbinicfigures have considerable influence on several Israeli parties and politicians, notably Shas and United Torah Judaism.
• Edah HaChareidis,anti-zionistHarediorganisation, that mostly demonstrates against secularization, mostly inJerusalem
• The Monitor Committee of Israeli Arabs, an Arab group, claiming to represent the interests of theIsraeli Arabminority in Israel, tend to be separatists and hence perceived as hostile by the Jewish majority and have little influence in politics.

Political issues

Major issues in Israeli political life include:

• TheIsraeli–Palestinian conflictandArab–Israeli conflict
• Therelationships between Jewish religious movements
• The nature of the state of Israel; (e.g., in what ways should it represent Judaism and in what ways should it represent secular democracy?) (seeJewish StateandReligion in Israel)
• TheIsraeli economyand social issues.

See also

• History of Israel
• Public administration in Israel

External links

• The Israeli Left Archiveat theInternational Institute of Social History