Archrival Herzog shuns Netanyahu after loss
Isaac Herzog, who competed and lost against Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel’s parliamentary elections, has said he would not join the current prime minister in the next coalition regime.
Herzog contested the Tuesday elections on the center-left Zionist Union party’s ticket, menacing Netanyahu (pictured below), who represented the ruling Likud party in the race. Results, which defied opinion surveys prior to the polls, gave Likud 30 seats in the 120-member Knesset (Israeli parliament), while the Zionist Union secured 24.
“Going into opposition is the only realistic option facing us,” Herzog told a meeting of his party in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, adding, “We shall continue to lead a large and strong camp….”
Zionist Union groups Herzog’s Labor party with the centrist HaTnuah of Tzipi Livni (seen below), who likewise sounded dejected about the returns.
Livni: Game still on
“The fight is not over yet,” Livni stated. “We cannot give up. We must fight for our way, also in opposition.”
The win guaranteed Netanyahu’s third consecutive tenure, and his fourth overall.
Following the elections and prior to the release of the preliminary results, Netanyahu declared victory. He said he already reached out to leaders of smaller parties in the wider right-wing bloc and urged them to quickly set up a coalition, which he insisted should be “strong and stable.”
Pre-election polls had predicted a humiliating defeat for the premier, who has been lately facing growing criticism for his handling of domestic politics and also a controversial anti-Iran speech he made at the US Congress on March 3.
HN/HSN/SS
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