Israel's Herzog to Assign Government Mandate on Sunday as Eisenkot Leads Recommendations

Israeli President Isaac Herzog announced Thursday evening that he will assign the mandate to form the next government on Sunday, after completing consultations with all factions elected to the 26th Knesset. Representatives of parties holding 67 seats recommended Yashar party chairman Gadi Eisenkot, while factions representing 46 seats backed Likud chairman and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Despite Eisenkot's clear numerical lead, Herzog stressed that the number of recommendations was not the only factor in his decision. He cautioned that whether Eisenkot could actually build a working government remained far from clear, given mutual refusals to cooperate both between and within the parliamentary blocs. Herzog said he would hold individual meetings with several party leaders in the coming days to explore coalition possibilities, pledging to leave no stone unturned in encouraging cooperation. The Yashar party welcomed the result, noting it was the highest number of recommendations received by any candidate to form a government since 2015. The party called on Herzog to assign Eisenkot the mandate without delay, so that a national emergency government could be formed to address Israel's security challenges. Yashar also warned that failure to form a government could force another election, at great cost to the country.