Israel President Herzog Tasks Eisenkot With Forming New Government

Mandate Conferred in Jerusalem As Eisenkot Eyes Broad Unity

Israeli President Isaac Herzog officially handed opposition politician and Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot the mandate to form a new government on Sunday evening. Standing alongside Eisenkot at the president's residence in Jerusalem, Herzog warned that Israel must face a new political reality and uncertainties following elections in the United States, stating The State of Israel needs a stable government and adding I hope with all my heart that whatever government is formed will lead to unity, connection and healing among all segments of our people – for our very existence depends on it, and we have only one country.

The formal ceremony on Sunday, November 8, 2026, corresponding to 28 Cheshvan, follows the October 27 parliamentary elections that left incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies without a governing majority in the 120-seat Knesset. Factions representing 67 Members of the Knesset formally recommended Eisenkot to lead the government, surpassing the 61-seat threshold required for a working majority. Factions comprising 46 Knesset members recommended Netanyahu, while a faction comprising seven Knesset members chose not to recommend anyone. Eisenkot's endorsements comprised the Jewish-led opposition bloc with 48 seats—including Yashar, Together, The Democrats, and Yisrael Beiteinu—alongside the Ra'am party with 8 seats and the Arab-led Joint List with 11 seats, following the Joint List's unanimous decision to recommend him.

That parliamentary tally puts Eisenkot on the clock with an initial 28 days to form a government, with a possible 14-day extension, giving him a statutory window of up to six weeks to negotiate with prospective allies and stitch together a viable administration.

Can 28 Days Bridge Deep Parliamentary Divisions?

Reeling from the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks and the three years of wars that have followed in Gaza and beyond, Eisenkot outlined a four-pillar framework for an emergency administration. His blueprint includes recognizing Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, upholding the Declaration of Independence, mandating universal national and military conscription, and dismantling the military and political wings of Hamas.

Putting together the parliamentary majority needed remains fraught, and any possible coalition requires candidates to make tough compromises that could outrage their own voters. Netanyahu and his allies lost their majority in parliament in last month's elections, dropping from an election tally of 53 seats down to 46 endorsements after the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party withheld its support with seven abstentions. That fracture in Netanyahu's long-standing right-wing alliance opened the door for Eisenkot. Yet, the left Arab-led parties that made historic gains stand as politically fraught kingmakers. Arab-led parties in Israel have endorsed Gadi Eisenkot despite his ruling out a coalition with them, driven by a shared goal of removing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from power. An Arab party has been part of a governing coalition just once in Israel's history, and forming such an alliance could prove deeply divisive after more than three years of war in Gaza.

What Options Remain For A Fractured Knesset?

Eisenkot and Netanyahu could theoretically seek to create a broad unity government with major Jewish parties, though the two men hold deep differences over many issues that will be difficult to bridge. Those divides include Netanyahu's reliance on religious parties demanding draft exemptions for ultra-Orthodox men, as well as Netanyahu's opposition to a formal investigation into the security failures surrounding the October 7 attacks. Alternatively, Eisenkot could seek to create a minority government shored up by external support from Arab parties that are not formal members of his coalition, though other members of his bloc have stated they would reject such an alliance.

Following the presidential decision, Eisenkot took to social media to signal his immediate priorities, posting on his X account: This is the time to establish a national emergency government. I will do anything possible to prove us worthy. Speaking after receiving the mandate, Eisenkot declared I am convinced that it is possible to swiftly form a new government with a substantial majority in the Knesset and I will lead the formation of a national emergency government, describing the political moment as one of the most vulnerable moments for Israeli democracy. Eisenkot also threw open the door to his rivals, stating If members of Likud and the Religious Zionist Party truly believe this is a time for unity, as they told the president, I cannot conceive of any reason why they would not support a government under my leadership and the principles I have presented, referring to Netanyahu's party and that of far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.

Shortly before Herzog's announcement, Netanyahu had released his own video statement calling for a national unity government while warning against what he called hastily swearing in a government with terrorist supporters, using language directed at the Arab-led parties. Netanyahu has also campaigned to head off any alliance between Eisenkot and the Arab-led parties, including unsubstantiated claims that Arab parties stole the elections.

How Did The Yashar Party Respond To The Prime Minister?

Eisenkot's party, Yashar, forcefully slammed the prime minister's video in a statement posted on X, urging members of Netanyahu's Likud party to disavow their alliance with radical parties in reference to the far-right factions in his religious-nationalist base. The Yashar statement argued that Eisenkot would only include parties and parliament members who support his party's principles.

With the mandate officially conferred on Sunday, November 8, 2026, the incoming challenger faces the immediate challenge of converting a 67-seat parliamentary recommendation into a functioning administration before his constitutional clock runs out.