Netanyahu, rightist allies appear to fall short of majority in Israel polls – World

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to secure a parliamentary majority with his natural religious and nationalist allies in yesterday's national elections, indicated partial results on Wednesday, setting the stage for a period of coalition negotiations that could threaten his political future and even clear the way for him to be tried on corruption charges.

Initial partial results showed that the Blue and White centrist match of challenger Benny Gantz tied with Netanyahu's Likud.

While the results do not guarantee that Gantz will be the next prime minister, they said that Netanyahu, who has led the country for more than 10 years, could have trouble maintaining the post.

Addressing his supporters early Wednesday, Netanyahu refused to acknowledge defeat and promised to work to form a new government that excludes Arab parties. His campaign focused heavily on attacking and questioning the loyalty of the country's Arab minority, a strategy that generated accusations of racism and incitement from Arab leaders.

"In the coming days, we will convene negotiations to gather a strong Zionist government and avoid a dangerous anti-Zionist government," he said. He said Arab parties "deny the existence of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state" and "glorify bloodthirsty murderers."

The partial results published on Wednesday by the Central Election Commission were based on 35 percent of the votes counted. The three Israeli television channels reported the same result, based on more than 90 percent of the votes counted, but did not explain the discrepancy with the commission percentage.

The final results are expected for Wednesday and could still change in favor of Netanyahu.

According to partial results, the Gantz and Netanyahu parties received 32 seats each in the 120-member parliament. The Likud with its natural allies of the religious and ultra-nationalist parties gathered 56 seats or five less than the necessary majority.

This means that both Likud and Blue and White will have difficulty establishing a ruling coalition without the support of the Yisrael Beitenu party of Avigdor Lieberman. That put Lieberman, a former Netanyahu protégé who has become one of the prime minister's fiercest rivals, in the position of king-maker.

The Arab parties, which had never before sat down in an Israeli government, also ended strongly, and exit polls predicted that they would form the third largest party in parliament.

Addressing his followers on Tuesday night, a jubilant Lieberman said he saw only "one option": a broad and secular coalition with Blue and White and Likud.

“We have always said that a unity government is only possible in emergency situations. And I tell them and I tell all citizens that today they watch us on television: the situation, both in terms of security and economic, are emergency situations, ”he said. "The country, therefore, requires broad government."

Early on Wednesday, Gantz said in a cheerful gathering of supporters that, although it was too early to declare victory, he had begun talking to potential partners and hoped to form a unity government.

"Starting tonight we will work to form a broad unity government that will express the will of the people," he said.

The focus will now be on the president of Israel, Reuven Rivlin, who will choose the candidate he believes has the best chance of forming a stable coalition. Rivlin should consult with all parties in the next few days before making his decision.

After that, the appointed prime minister would have up to six weeks to form a coalition. If that fails, Rivlin could give another prime minister candidate 28 days to form a coalition. And if that doesn't work, the new elections would be triggered once again. Rivlin has said he will do everything possible to avoid such a scenario.

Lieberman called for an immediate start of negotiations and predicted that it could be concluded quickly. But such an agreement promises to be complicated.

Gantz, a former military chief who has presented himself as a unifying figure in a divided nation, has ruled out an association with Likud if Netanyahu remains at the helm at a time when he is expected to be charged with criminal charges.

But in his speech today, he did not make such conditions. "I intend to talk to everyone," he said, not to mention Netanyahu.

It is unlikely that Lieberman, who runs a nationalist but secular party, sits with the Arab parties on the left or the ultra-Orthodox religious parties on the right.

That could limit the maneuverability of Gantz and Netanyahu and could put pressure on the lifelong leader, who has ruled for more than a decade, to step aside.

Likud members said they stayed behind their leader.

"We have the basic principle of supporting the party leader who was elected in the party's primaries, so we will not take action against Netanyahu," said lawmaker Micky Zohar, a loyalist from Netanyahu.

Netanyahu had sought an absolute majority with his allies in hopes of passing legislation that would give him immunity against the expected accusation.

The attorney general of Israel recommended accusing Netanyahu of bribery, fraud and abuse of trust in three scandals, pending a hearing scheduled for next month. A formal accusation would increase the pressure on Netanyahu to move aside if he has no immunity.

Netanyahu tried to portray himself as an experienced statesman qualified to lead the country in difficult times during an alarmist campaign marked by muddles and slogans that were condemned as racist. Gantz tried to paint Netanyahu as divisive and plagued by scandals, offering himself as a calming influence and an honest alternative.

Netanyahu's campaign promoted images of him flying to world capitals and boasting of warm relations with powerful leaders, especially the president of the United States, Donald Trump.

At the same time, he issued repeated warnings from the end of the world that his opponents were plotting with politicians from the country's Arab minority to "steal" the elections.

He tried, and failed, to pass legislation that allowed cameras in polling stations, a step that said it was necessary to combat alleged fraud in Arab cities. Facebook suspended its account for 24 hours last week after posting a post that said "Arabs want to annihilate us all." Netanyahu also tried to appeal to his hardline base with a series of electoral promises, including plans to annex all of Israel's settlements in the West Bank.

His proposal, which could extinguish any remaining hope for a Palestinian state, was condemned by much of the world, including important Arab countries such as Jordan and Saudi Arabia. But the United States remained silent, suggesting that it had coordinated with Washington ahead of time.

Netanyahu's frantic warnings about the Arabs seemed to be counterproductive, turning off some Jewish voters and provoking great participation in the Arab sector.

Ayman Odeh, leader of the main Arab faction in parliament, said Netanyahu's repeated attacks had increased participation and hurt Netanyahu in the end.

"There is a high price to pay for the incitement," he said Channel 13 TELEVISION.

The election was the second of the year in Israel.

In the April vote, Netanyahu seemed to have the advantage, with his traditional allies of nationalist and ultra-religious Jewish parties that controlled a parliamentary majority. But Lieberman, his mercurial ally turned rival, refused to join the new coalition, citing an excessive influence he granted to ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties. Without a parliamentary majority, Netanyahu dissolved the parliament and called for a new election.

Lieberman's bet was worth it on Tuesday, and partial results indicated that his match had almost doubled in strength, with nine seats.

The Israeli election commission said 69.4 percent of all eligible voters voted when the polls closed Tuesday night, a number slightly higher than the one who participated in the April vote. The participation in the April elections was 68.5 percent.