Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has lost his parliamentary majority after the country’s Central Elections Committee certified the results of the October 27 general election, setting the stage for difficult coalition negotiations.

Netanyahu’s political bloc secured 53 seats in the 120-member Knesset, eight short of the 61 seats required for a parliamentary majority. The result represents a significant decline from the 64 seats held by his coalition following the 2022 election.

The opposition bloc, led by former Israeli military chief Gadi Eisenkot, won 48 seats, while Arab-led parties secured a record 19 seats, leaving neither political camp with enough support to form a government independently.

The certification followed a review of the election results, with the Central Elections Committee reporting no evidence of electoral fraud.

The findings dealt a blow to Netanyahu’s camp, which had questioned the election outcome. His Likud party had alleged, without providing evidence, that Arab-led parties had “stolen” the election with financial support from Qatar, an accusation rejected by Doha.

Likud abstained from the certification process, while National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s party voted against it.

Coalition negotiations begin

With the election results officially certified, Israeli President Isaac Herzog has begun consultations with political leaders to determine who should be tasked with forming the next government.

Eisenkot is reportedly emerging as a leading candidate to receive the first opportunity to form a coalition.

A potential alliance between his opposition bloc and the Arab-led parties would command 67 seats in the Knesset, giving him a parliamentary majority.

However, the prospect of such an arrangement remains uncertain, as Eisenkot has previously ruled out forming a coalition with the Arab-led parties.

The negotiations are expected to determine whether Israel can establish a new government or whether the political deadlock will persist, despite the conclusion of the election process.