Netanyahu fails to gain right-wing majority in final election tally

The Central Elections Committee completed the process of counting all the votes cast in Tuesday’s election on Thursday afternoon, a committee spokeswoman announced.

The spokeswoman said it would now take time to verify the counting and to upload the new numbers to the system.

But Channel 12 reported that there were no new changes in the mandates of the parties since Thursday morning, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s camp with Yamina remained at 59 seats.

The Likud won 30 seats, Yesh Atid 17, Shas 9 and Blue and White 8. 

There are four parties with seven seats: Yamina, Labor, United Torah Judaism and Yisrael Beytenu.

The four parties with six seats are the Joint List, Meretz, New Hope and the Religious Zionist Party.

Ra’am (United Arab List) narrowly crossed the electoral threshold with four seats.New Hope leader Gideon Sa’ar tweeted that it was now clear that Netanyahu could not build a coalition, so a “government of change” should be built. He said he would set aside his ego to allow that to happen.

עם פרסום התוצאות הסופיות של הבחירות ברור שלנתניהו אין רוב להקמת ממשלה בראשותו. עתה יש לפעול למיצוי האפשרות להקמת ממשלת שינוי. כפי שהודעתי בליל הבחירות: אגו לא יהיה שיקול.

— Gideon Sa’ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) March 25, 2021

Earlier Thursday, Religious Zionist Party leader MK Bezalel Smotrich has ruled out joining a government that is in any way supported by the Islamist Ra’am Party.With the final votes of the election still being counted but the likelihood that the political stalemate of the last two years will continue, Smotrich said that his ultra-nationalist party would not agree to a government that included Ra’am or relied on its support from outside the coalition.“A right-wing government will not be established that is based on Mansour Abbas’ Ra’am Party. Period. Not from within, not from outside, not through abstaining, and not though any other Isra-bluff,” wrote Smotrich on Facebook Thursday morning.  

“Terrorism supporters who deny the existence of the State of Israel as a Jewish state are not legitimate partners for any government,” he continued.He also accused the Israeli Left of “persecuting” Netanyahu and for being “willing to sell the State of Israel to those who identify with the worst of its enemies.”Senior Shas MK Itzik Cohen expressed support, however, for the idea of a right-wing, religious government supported in some way by Ra’am, saying the party had shown “huge bravery” by “taking a step to the Right” and demonstrating a willingness to join a government, and accusing Smotrich of being an extremist himself. Earlier on Thursday morning, Attorney Shuaa Mantzur, a member of Raam’s negotiation team, told Army Radio that from the Arab party’s point of view, it was impossible to be part of a coalition with Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir, No. 3 on the Religious Zionist Party’s electoral list.