2021 Israeli legislative election

Legislative elections will be held in Israel on 23 March 2021 to elect the members of the 24th Knesset.

2021 Israeli legislative election
23 March 2021
All 120 seats in the Knesset
61 seats needed for a majority
Party Leader Current seats
Likud Benjamin Netanyahu 37
Yesh Atid Yair Lapid 15
Blue and White Benny Gantz 13
Joint List Ayman Odeh 11
Shas Aryeh Deri 9
UTJ Moshe Gafni 7
Yisrael Beiteinu Avigdor Lieberman 7
Ra'am Mansour Abbas 4
Meretz Nitzan Horowitz 4
Yamina Naftali Bennett 3
Telem Moshe Ya'alon 3
Labor Merav Michaeli 2
New Hope Gideon Sa'ar 2
Religious Zionist Bezalel Smotrich 2
Jewish Home Hagit Moshe 1
Incumbent Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu
Likud

Background

According to the coalition agreement signed between Likud and Blue and White in 2020, elections were to be held 36 months after the swearing-in of the 35th government, making 23 May 2023 the last possible election date. However, Israeli law stipulates that if the 2020 state budget was not passed by 23 December 2020, the Knesset would be dissolved, and elections would be held by 23 March 2021.[1]

On 2 December 2020, the Knesset passed the preliminary reading of a bill to dissolve the current government by a vote of 61–54.[2] On 21 December 2020, the Knesset failed to pass a bill to avoid dispersal by a vote of 47–49.[3] Since the Knesset had failed to approve the 2020 state budget by the required deadline, at midnight IST on 23 December 2020, the government coalition collapsed, and the 23rd Knesset was officially dissolved. In accordance with the law that the election must be held within 90 days after the dissolution of the Knesset, the date for elections to the 24th Knesset was automatically set for 23 March 2021.[4]

Electoral system

The 120 seats in the Knesset are elected by closed list proportional representation in a single nationwide constituency. The electoral threshold for the election is 3.25%.[5]

Surplus-vote agreements
Further information: D'Hondt method

Two parties can sign a surplus vote agreement that allows them to compete for leftover seats as if they were running together on the same list. The Bader–Ofer method slightly favours larger lists, meaning that alliances are more likely to receive leftover seats than parties would be individually. If the alliance receives leftover seats, the Bader–Ofer calculation is applied privately, to determine how the seats are divided among the two allied lists.[6]

The following parties have signed surplus vote-sharing agreements for the 2021 election:

Primary elections

Primary elections are held by parties in advance of the national election to determine party leadership and or the members of the party's list who will represent the party in the Knesset, according to the number of seats that the party wins in the election:

Balad

Knesset MK Sami Abu Shehadeh announced on 14 January 2021 that he would run for the leadership of Balad.[10] MK and former leader Mtanes Shehadeh sought re-election. The party held primaries on 23 January 2021 for its leader and its list for Knesset. The Balad council, which consists of a total of 600 members, were eligible to vote in Nazareth.[11] Abu Shehadeh was elected party leader by the Central Committee, with a total of 230 votes.[12]

Green Party

Stav Shaffir was re-elected as the head of Green Party on 29 January 2021.[13]

Jewish Home
Further information: 2021 Jewish Home leadership election

On 5 January, incumbent party leader Rafi Peretz stated that he would not head the party and would not stand for re-election, but did not rule out a return to politics in the future.[14] Nir Orbach announced he would run for the leadership slot.[15] Hagit Moshe also ran (at Netanyahu's request).[16] The party's Central Committee selected its chair and party list, rather than holding a vote amongst party members.[17] Moshe was elected party leader by the Central Committee on 19 January 2021.[18] Party primaries were held on 26 January.[19]

Labor
Further information: 2021 Israeli Labor Party leadership election

The Tel Aviv District Court ruled on 3 January 2021 that its primaries for its Knesset list and leadership must take place, despite the fact that Amir Peretz and his supporters voted in favor of canceling them. MK Merav Michaeli announced she would run for party leadership shortly after.[20] Gil Beilin announced he would run on 11 January.[21] The Israeli High Court rejected an appeal by the Labor party, ensuring that all party members (instead of just committee members) will be able to vote in the primary.[22] Former Labor leader Ehud Barak announced on 18 January that he would not run,[23] while Itzik Shmuli announced the next day that he would not run. Avi Shaked and David Landsman,[24] Ethiopian immigrant Yitzhak Time,[25] and Na'ava Katz also ran.[26]

The vote for party leader was won by Michaeli on 24 January.[27]

The deadline for entering the Knesset primary was extended to 30 January; 59 candidates entered the race.[13] The primary election for choosing the Knesset slate took place 1 February.[28]

Likud

The Likud was ordered by its internal court to have its Constitutional Committee meet by 30 December to begin preparations for the selection of candidates for its electoral slate, following a petition filed by members of the party's Central Committee.[29] The party's Constitution Committee voted on 30 December to cancel party primaries,[30] which was made official on 2 January 2021.[31]

Meretz

Meretz would have held a leadership election on 13 January 2021, while a primary for the rest of its electoral list would have been held on 21 January.[32] However, the party decided on 3 January 2021 to not hold primaries.[33]

Parties
For a more comprehensive list, see Party lists for the 2021 Israeli legislative election.
See also: List of political parties in Israel

Parliamentary factions

At the end of the 23rd Knesset, there were thirteen factions in parliament. The parties of these parliamentary factions are all fielding lists to compete in the 2021 elections.

Name Ideology Symbol Primary demographic Leader 2020 result At the time
of dissolution
Votes (%) Seats
Likud National liberalism מחל‎ – Benjamin Netanyahu 29.46%
36 / 120
36 / 120
Yesh Atid-Telem Social liberalism פה‎ – Yair Lapid, Moshe Ya'alon 26.59%
18 / 120
16 / 120
Blue and White Liberalism – Benny Gantz
15 / 120
15 / 120
Derekh Eretz National liberalism – Yoaz Hendel, Zvi Hauser
2 / 120
Joint List Minority interests ודעם‎ Israeli Arabs Ayman Odeh 12.67%
15 / 120
15 / 120
Shas Religious conservatism שס‎ Sephardi and
Mizrahi Haredim		 Aryeh Deri 7.69%
9 / 120
9 / 120
United Torah Judaism Religious conservatism ג‎ Ashkenazi Haredim Yaakov Litzman 5.98%
7 / 120
7 / 120
Labor Labor Zionism אמת‎ – Amir Peretz 5.83%
3 / 120
3 / 120
Meretz Social democracy – Nitzan Horowitz
3 / 120
3 / 120
Gesher Social liberalism – Orly Levy
1 / 120
1 / 120
Yisrael Beiteinu Nationalism ל‎ Russian-speakers Avigdor Lieberman 5.74%
7 / 120
7 / 120
Yamina National conservatism טב‎ – Naftali Bennett 5.24%
5 / 120
5 / 120
Jewish Home Religious Zionism Israeli settlers,
Modern Orthodox and Hardal Jews		 Hagit Moshe
1 / 120
1 / 120

Contesting parties

Public expression of interest

The following parties, which do not have representation in the current Knesset, have expressed interest in participating in the 2021 election:

Not running
  • The Israelis, a party founded by Tel Aviv mayor Ron Huldai, dropped out of the race on 4 February 2021.[47]
  • The Israeli Veterans Party dropped out of the race on 3 February 2021[48] and has endorsed Yesh Atid.[49]
  • The Jewish Home dropped out of the race on 4 February 2021 and has endorsed Yamina.[50]
  • Telem dropped out of the race on 1 February 2021.[51]
  • Tnufa, a party founded by former Yesh Atid MK Ofer Shelah, dropped out of the race on 4 February 2021.[52]
  • Zehut announced on 24 December 2020 that the party would not run in the election.[53]

Opinion polls
Main article: Opinion polling for the 2021 Israeli legislative election

This graph shows the polling trends from the 2 March 2020 Israeli legislative election until the next election day using 4-poll moving average. Scenario polls are not included here.

For parties not crossing the electoral threshold (currently 3.25%) in any given poll, the number of seats is calculated as a percentage of the 120 total seats. Labor-Meretz-Gesher and Labor-Meretz are shown as Labor before the splits; Yesh Atid-Telem is shown as Yesh Atid before the split. Derekh Eretz is shown separately until December 2020, when it merged into New Hope. Religious Zionist includes Otzma Yehudit and Noam.

References
  1. Hoffman, Gil (1 December 2020). "The Knesset dispersal bill will inevitably be an anti-climax - analysis". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  2. "Israel elections loom as lawmakers back bill to dissolve parliament". BBC News. 2 December 2020. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  3. Hoffman, Gil (22 December 2020). "Election prevention bill fails, Israel headed to elections on March 23". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
  4. Wootliff, Raoul. "Israel calls 4th election in 2 years as Netanyahu-Gantz coalition collapses". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  5. Harkov, Lahav (16 March 2014). "With Bader-Ofer method, not every ballot counts". The Jerusalem Post.
  6. The Distribution of Knesset Seats Among the Lists—the Bader-Offer Method Knesset
  7. Hoffman, Gil (4 January 2021). "Four parties conspire against Netanyahu with vote deals". The Jerusalem Post.
  8. Azulay, Moran. "Yesh Atid and Yisrael Beytenu sign surplus-vote sharing agreement". Ynetnews. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  9. Azulay, Moran (7 February 2021). "Blue & White, New Economic Party sign surplus agreement". Ynet. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
  10. "MK Samy Abu Shahadeh to run for Balad leadership". Arutz Sheva. 14 January 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
  11. Hoffman, Gil (21 January 2021). "Balad Party to elect leader on Saturday". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  12. Khoury, Jack (24 January 2021). "Lawmaker Sami Abu Shehadeh Wins Leadership Primary in Israeli Arab Party Balad". Haaretz. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  13. Hoffman, Gil (30 January 2021). "Israel elections: Dozens running for four seats in Labor". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
  14. "Rafi Peretz to quit politics as Jewish Home seeks to merge with Yamina once more". The Times of Israel. 5 January 2021. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  15. Staff writer (5 January 2021). "Nir Orbach looks to replace Rabbi Rafi Peretz as Jewish Home leader". Arutz Sheva. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  16. Hoffman, Gil (18 January 2021). "Bayit Yehudi to hold leadership primaries, Netanyahu interferes". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  17. "Jewish Home Central Committee approves election of chairman and list". Arutz Sheva. 5 January 2021. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  18. Hoffman, Gil (19 January 2021). "Jerusalem Deputy Mayor Hagit Moshe to head Bayit Yehudi". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  19. @IsraelexLive (26 January 2021). "Results of the Jewish Home primaries. The party head, Hagit Moshe, was selected last week; the other seven candidates will appear in this order on whatever list the Jewish Home ends up running" (Tweet). Retrieved 26 January 2021 – via Twitter.
  20. Hoffman, Gil (3 January 2021). "Israel Elections: Court forces primaries in Labor Party". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  21. Hoffman, Gil (11 January 2021). "Gil Beilin announces he will run to head Labor Party". Arutz Sheva. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  22. @IsraelexLive (14 January 2021). "It's official: The High Court has rejected Labor's appeal. Labor will remain bound by the lower court's ruling forcing it to hold a full primary among all its members, rather than only those in its Central Committee" (Tweet). Retrieved 14 January 2021 – via Twitter.
  23. Hoffman, Gil (18 January 2021). "Ehud Barak to not run for Labor leader". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  24. Shmuel Smith (19 January 2021). "Labor to Lose Another MK". Hamodia. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  25. Hoffman, Gil (21 January 2021). "Ethiopian immigrant joins Labor leadership race". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  26. "Efrat councilwoman to run for leadership of Labor". Arutz Sheva. 21 January 2021. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  27. Hoffman, Gil (24 January 2021). "Victorious Michaeli to begin merger talks with Huldai". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  28. Wootliff, Raoul (2 February 2021). "Ex-commando, social activist, Reform rabbi take top slots in Labor primary". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  29. Baruch, Hezki (27 December 2020). "Will there be primaries in the Likud?". Arutz Sheva. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  30. Harkov, Lahav (30 December 2020). "Likud cancels primary, lets Netanyahu choose 6 candidates". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 30 December 2020.
  31. "Likud officially cancels leadership primaries". The Jerusalem Post. 2 January 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  32. @IsraelexLive (30 December 2020). "Meretz has scheduled its leadership election for January 13, and the primary election to populate the rest of the list on January 21" (Tweet). Retrieved 30 December 2020 – via Twitter.
  33. "Meretz agrees to nix primaries, adds 2nd Arab candidate in party's top 5". The Times of Israel. 3 January 2021. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  34. Staff writer (3 February 2021). "Yesh Atid, Yamina, Blue and White file their election slates, ruling out mergers". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  35. Staff writer (3 February 2021). "Israel Election 2021: All the Official Party Lists So Far". Haaretz. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  36. Sivan Hilaie (3 February 2021). "Meretz, Ra'am and New Economic Party file slates". Ynet. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  37. Raoul Wootliff; Staff writer (4 February 2021). "Gideon Sa'ar's New Hope files election slate, heavy with ex-Likud MKs". The Times of Israel.
  38. Staff writer (31 January 2021). "Far-right Otzma Yehudit, Noam parties to run together in Knesset elections". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
  39. Staff writer (3 February 2021). "Religious Zionist, Otzma Yehudit parties to run together". Arutz Sheva. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  40. Staff writer (4 February 2021). "UTJ submits list for 24th Knesset". Arutz Sheva.
  41. "Rabbi Haim Amsalem to run for the Knesset". Arutz Sheva. 5 January 2021. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  42. Siegel, Tobias (9 January 2021). "Protesters go political: 'Democratic Party' launches at Balfour protest". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
  43. Lazaroff, Tovah (12 January 2021). "New Israeli-Arab party wants to partner with Yesh Atid". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  44. "יהב מקים מפלגה חדשה: "50 אחוז מהרשימה - ערבים" • רדיו חיפה 107.5" (in Hebrew). 5 January 2021.
  45. Jaffe-Hoffman, Maayan (21 January 2021). "Anti-vaccination coercion doctor launches party to 'heal' Israel". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
  46. Hoffman, Gil (4 January 2021). "Four parties conspire against Netanyahu with vote deals". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  47. "Huldai announces he won't run either". Arutz Sheva. 4 February 2021. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  48. Staff writer (3 February 2021). "Parties start registering slates for Knesset election, unveiling candidates". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  49. Staff writer (3 February 2021). "Pensioners party pulls out of Knesset race". Israel Hayom. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  50. Gil Hoffman (4 February 2021). "Israel Elections: Bayit Yehudi Party not running in election". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  51. Baruch, Hezki (1 February 2021). "Telem chief Moshe Yaalon drops out of Knesset race". Arutz Sheva. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  52. Staff writer (4 February 2021). "Ofer Shelah quits political race following failed merger talks with Labor". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  53. Bachner, Michael (24 December 2020). "Feiglin won't run in election; decries fixation on personas rather than ideas". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.