Tel Aviv Rally: 840,000 Votes Shape Coalition Math

840,000 people voted for Ra’am and the Joint List, a coalition of three Arab-led parties, marking a 64 percent increase from the 2022 elections, according to the Central Election Committee. This surge occurred against the backdrop of a parliamentary impasse that left both major blocs short of a majority.

In Tel Aviv on Saturday, thousands gathered to press the opposition to resolve the deadlock. Protesters told the AFP news agency that this moment represents the final opportunity for substantive change. They described Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving leader, as a great manipulator.

The election results held on Tuesday left Netanyahu’s bloc with 53 seats and opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot with 48. Neither group commands the 61 seats required to govern in the 120-seat Knesset alone. The three Arab-led parties captured 19 seats, creating a potential path to a 67-seat majority if they join Eisenkot.

Eisenkot has previously excluded Arab parties from coalition talks. However, the current arithmetic suggests that allying with them is the most viable route to forming a government. Nour Odeh, a correspondent for Al Jazeera, reported from Ramallah that voters believe Eisenkot and other Jewish-Israeli leaders must heed their call for change.

Counter-protesters also attended the demonstrations on Saturday. Supporters of Netanyahu shouted that Israel should not have a government with so-called terrorists, Odeh said. Right-wing circles have labeled the historic turnout of Palestinian Israelis as electoral terrorism, equating it to the October 7th attack when Hamas-led fighters killed more than 1,200 people and took hundreds captive.

Netanyahu accused the Palestinian-Israeli parties of stealing the polls by accepting funding from Qatar. Qatar rejected the claim, describing it as a disinformation campaign. Odeh noted that Palestinian-Israeli votes are under attack because they hold a prominent position in determining whether Eisenkot can form a government.

The political landscape remains defined by the need for a 67-seat coalition. Eisenkot must decide whether to accept the partnership with the parties that won 19 seats. The outcome will depend on whether Jewish-Israeli leaders listen to the voice of the 840,000 voters who supported the Arab-led lists.