While the make up of Israel’s next government remains unclear, what was striking in the aftermath of the September 17 election is that Israel’s democracy remains alive and feisty.
firstly, despite an unprecedented second election within five months and widespread predictions of higher voter apathy, voter turnout increased 2% from April’s poll to around 69%.
Secondly, Arab-Israelis showed their desire to participate in Israel’s democratic process. Bouncing back from a low turnout in April, approximately 10% more Arab Israelis voted this time around.
Moreover, highlighting the absurdity of critics alleging “apartheid” in Israel, the Arab-dominated Joint List now holds the third-largest number of seats in the Knesset (13, up from 10), is an active participant in the horse trading to form a new government, and its head, Ayman Odeh, may possibly become the country’s official opposition leader.
Thirdly, ultra-orthodox party Otzma Yehudit, followers of the late extremist Rabbi Meir Kahane, again failed to win any seats – a welcome outcome for a party whose extremism and racism deserve no place in the Israeli mainstream.
Meanwhile, the results — Blue and White winning 33 seats, Likud with 31 — have seen most commentators agree that a national unity government is the most likely outcome of the coalition negotiations which follow any Israeli election. This may also be a good outcome.
Unity governments have frequently governed Israel in the past and the results have been mixed. Some broad-based coalition governments have become virtually paralysed with infighting. However, unity governments have also served Israel well at times of grave national challenge, such as the Six Day War in 1967, or the hyper-inflation crisis of the mid-80s.
Today, there are grave and persistent security threats to Israel from the north and Gaza — all of which derive from Iran and its local proxies. While these threats are not new, there is good reason to believe that they are reaching a critical turning point — suggesting that a united government reaching across the political spectrum might be the best way for Israel to confront these challenges.
Source: Rubinstein, C (October 2019). Australia Israel Review. Page 4. Abridge.
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