Israel Will Go to the Polls on March 23, 4th Time in Less Than 2 Years
23 December, 2020 |
3 years ago
Jerusalem, 23 December, 2020 (TPS) -- The 23rd Knesset dissolved automatically on midnight Tuesday after the deadline for passing the 2020 state budget expired, and Israel will go to the polls for the fourth time in a little less than two years.
By law, the government had until December 23 to pass the state budget, and after failing to do so, it automatically fell.
This is the first time in Israel’s history that such an event occurred.
From its inception, the government has been squabbling over almost every issue and is considered one of the worst in Israel’s history.
During the Knesset’s last session before it dissolved, Speaker of the Knesset Yariv Levin said that “we are embarking on an election campaign that is not simple. From here I call on each and every one of us, and each and every one of Israel’s citizens, to avoid escalating the tensions and to do all that is possible so that the election campaign will be conducted and concluded in an orderly manner and without displays of violence.”
The elections come as the left-center bloc is divided, the Arab-majority Joint List is on the verge of dissolution, and three parties that will combat each other are running on the right, ensuring an acrimonious period in an already toxic environment in Israel.
Polls show that Prime Minister Benjamín Netanyahu’s Likud party is in the lead with about 30 seats while Blue and White, his former chief coalition partner, has lost most of its power and has less than 10 seats.
The polls further show that no leader has a solid majority to establish a coalition, lending further instability to the already volatile political situation.
