2022 Israeli legislative election

2022 Israeli legislative election
Israel
← 2021 1 November 2022 Next →
All 120 seats in the Knesset
61 seats needed for a majority
Turnout70.63% (Increase 3.19pp)
Party Leader Vote % Seats +/–
Likud Benjamin Netanyahu 23.41 32 +2
Yesh Atid Yair Lapid 17.78 24 +7
RZP–Otzma Bezalel Smotrich 10.84 14 +8
National Unity Benny Gantz 9.08 12 −2
Shas Aryeh Deri 8.25 11 +2
UTJ Yitzhak Goldknopf 5.88 7 0
Yisrael Beiteinu Avigdor Lieberman 4.48 6 −1
Ra'am Mansour Abbas 4.07 5 +1
Hadash–Ta'al Ayman Odeh 3.75 5 0
Labor Merav Michaeli 3.69 4 −3
This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
Prime Minister before Prime Minister after
Yair Lapid
Yesh Atid		 Benjamin Netanyahu
Likud

Legislative elections were held in Israel on 1 November 2022 to elect the 120 members of the 25th Knesset. The results saw the right-wing national camp of former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu win a parliamentary majority, amid losses for left-wing and Arab parties, as well as gains by the far-right.[1][2][3]

After the 2021 elections, the next elections had been scheduled for no later than 11 November 2025 according to the four-year term limit set by Basic Law: The Government. The thirty-sixth government, a national unity government formed between eight political parties following the 2021 elections, held the narrowest possible majority (61 seats) in the 120-member Knesset. In April 2022, MK Idit Silman left the governing coalition, leaving it without a majority.[4]

On 20 June 2022, following several legislative defeats for the government in the Knesset, prime minister Naftali Bennett and alternate prime minister Yair Lapid announced the introduction of a bill to dissolve the 24th Knesset,[5] which was approved on 30 June.[6] Simultaneously, in accordance with the rotation government agreement that was part of the 2021 coalition deal, Lapid became prime minister and led a caretaker government until a new government took office.[7][6]

Within the context of the 2018–2022 Israeli political crisis, this was the fifth Knesset election in nearly four years, as no party had been able to form a stable coalition since 2019.[8][9] A total of 40 parties registered to run for these elections, although only twelve to fourteen parties were projected to cross the 3.25% electoral threshold to win seats under the closed list, proportional representation electoral system. Ten parties succeeded in crossing the threshold.[2][10] On 21 December, Netanyahu announced that he had succeeded in forming a coalition government consisting of 64 MKs.[11] The thirty-seventh government was sworn in on 29 December.[12]

  1. ^ Ravid, Barak (2 November 2022). "The rise of Israel's extreme right". Axios. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Israel Election Final Results: Netanyahu, Jewish Far Right Win Power, Fiasco for Left". Haaretz. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  3. ^ Kingsley, Patrick (3 November 2022). "Lapid Concedes in Israel, Paving Way for Netanyahu's Return to Power". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  4. ^ Ben Zion, Ilan (6 April 2022). "Israel government loses majority as religious lawmaker quits". Associated Press. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  5. ^ Keller-Lynn, Carrie (20 June 2022). "Bennett announces coalition's demise, new elections: 'We did our utmost to continue'". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  6. ^ a b Keller-Lynn, Carrie (30 June 2022). "Knesset disbands, sets elections for November 1; Lapid to become PM at midnight". The Times of Israel.
  7. ^ Goldenberg, Tia (3 July 2022). "Israel's caretaker PM Lapid holds first Cabinet meeting". Associated Press News. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  8. ^ Sagalyn, Dan (31 October 2022). "Israel holds fifth election in four years as Netanyahu attempts to regain power". PBS NewsHour. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  9. ^ Alsaafin, Linah; Najjar, Farah. "Israel election updates: Netanyahu set for comeback – Exit polls". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  10. ^ Tress, Luke (3 November 2022). "What happens next: Netanyahu expected to be tasked with forming government next week". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
  11. ^ "Israel seems closer to its most right-wing government yet as Netanyahu says he's formed a new coalition". CBS News. 22 December 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2022.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference BBCswearing was invoked but never defined (see the help page).