A new government is replacing the previous one. It is how things should work.
After twelve years, four inconclusive elections, and a political deadlock that tested the patience of a nation, Israel's Knesset voted by the narrowest of margins — 60 to 59 — to end Benjamin Netanyahu's era and install Naftali Bennett as prime minister. The transition marks not merely a change of leadership but a structural shift in how Israeli power is held: where one man once concentrated authority, eight competing parties now share it. History was made quietly within the coalition itself, as the conservative Arab party Ra'am joined an Israeli government for the first time, a detail whose significance may outlast the drama of the moment.
- Two years of political paralysis and four failed elections created a vacuum so deep that eight ideologically opposed parties found common cause in a single shared purpose: removing Netanyahu.
- The margin of approval — one vote, with one abstention — laid bare just how fragile the new order is before it has even begun to govern.
- Netanyahu refused to leave quietly, offering last-minute deals, delivering a defiant farewell vow to return, and watching his loyalists shout 'shame' and 'liar' as Bennett was sworn in.
- Bennett's coalition spans radical left to nationalist right and includes, for the first time in Israeli history, an Arab party in formal government — a historic inclusion that is simultaneously the coalition's greatest achievement and its deepest fault line.
- The new government inherits a crowded inbox of crises — Gaza, West Bank settlements, Iran's nuclear ambitions, and a Biden administration navigating its own pressures — with a prime minister whose own party holds just six of 120 parliamentary seats.
Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving prime minister, left office on Sunday after the Knesset approved his successor, Naftali Bennett, by a single vote — 60 to 59, with one abstention. The razor-thin margin was a fitting reflection of a country that had spent two years and four elections unable to resolve its own political future.
Bennett inherits an eight-party coalition assembled from across the ideological spectrum — from the radical left to the nationalist right — united by little more than the shared goal of ending Netanyahu's tenure. The coalition's most historic element is the inclusion of Ra'am, a conservative Arab party, marking the first time an Arab political movement has formally entered an Israeli government. Political scientists noted the shift as a move from concentrated, near-monarchical authority to a distributed, oligarchic arrangement.
Netanyahu did not go quietly. On Friday, he made a last-ditch offer to Defense Minister Benny Gantz, proposing to hand over the prime ministership in exchange for remaining as vice prime minister. Gantz refused immediately. At the swearing-in, Netanyahu delivered a defiant speech promising to return, while his supporters interrupted Bennett's remarks with shouts of 'shame' and 'liar.' Bennett responded with composure: 'What is happening here is basically democracy. A new government is replacing the previous one. It is how things should work.'
Netanyahu leaves behind a complicated legacy. He oversaw significant economic growth, reduced unemployment from 9.4 to around 5 percent, led one of the world's most successful COVID-19 vaccination campaigns, and brokered diplomatic agreements with five Arab nations. Yet his tenure also polarized Israeli society deeply, with more than half of citizens surveyed in 2020 believing democracy itself was under threat.
Bennett's path forward is uncertain. His own party holds only six coalition seats, and the coalition agreement requires him to hand the prime ministership to centrist leader Yair Lapid after two years. The new government must navigate profound disagreements on Gaza, Iran, West Bank settlements, and the relationship between religion and state — all while managing expectations from a Biden administration facing its own pressures on Israeli human rights. As one analyst put it, removing Netanyahu was the easy part. Now the real work begins.
Benjamin Netanyahu, seventy-one years old and Israel's longest-serving prime minister, walked away from power on Sunday after more than a decade at the helm. The Knesset voted 60 to 59 to approve Naftali Bennett, an ultranationalist politician, as his successor. Of the parliament's 120 seats, one member abstained, making the margin razor-thin—a fitting measure of how fractured Israeli politics has become.
Bennett inherits leadership of an eight-party coalition that stretches from the radical left to nationalist right, a combination so unlikely it required two years of political crisis to assemble. Four elections in that span produced no clear winner, leaving Netanyahu to govern in a caretaker capacity while the country lurched from one stalemate to another. The breakthrough came when eight parties agreed to unite around a single goal: removing him. On Friday, Netanyahu made one last attempt to stay, offering the defense minister Benny Gantz the prime minister's job in exchange for making himself vice prime minister. Gantz refused immediately.
What makes this coalition historic is the inclusion of Ra'am, a conservative Arab party—the first time an Arab political movement has formally joined an Israeli government. The coalition's diversity is both its strength and its vulnerability. Gideon Rahat, a political scientist at Hebrew University, described the shift as moving from a monarchical regime to an oligarchic one. Netanyahu had concentrated power in his own hands, and now that authority would be distributed among eight competing interests.
Bennett took the oath on Sunday evening after Netanyahu delivered a defiant speech. "If our destiny is to be in opposition, we will do so with our heads held high, we will topple this bad government and return to lead the country our way," Netanyahu told parliament. "We will return soon." Bennett responded by thanking his predecessor for his service while promising a "reasonable and responsible" government that would end what he called a "terrible period of hatred among the Israeli people." Netanyahu's loyalists interrupted repeatedly, shouting "shame" and "liar." Bennett replied calmly: "What is happening here is basically democracy. A new government is replacing the previous one. It is how things should work."
The new prime minister promised to expand diplomatic agreements with Arab nations and said his government would pursue economic measures benefiting Palestinians, though he made clear that any violence would be met with force. On Iran, Bennett signaled continuity with Netanyahu's hardline stance, declaring that renewing the nuclear agreement would be a mistake and that Israel would not permit Iran to acquire nuclear weapons. This puts him at odds with the Biden administration, which is attempting to restore the accord that Donald Trump abandoned. Yet Biden sent congratulations, and so did Angela Merkel. The American president pledged his administration's commitment to working with the new Israeli government on security and stability.
Thousands gathered at Rabin Square in Tel Aviv to celebrate Netanyahu's departure. His twelve years in office—interrupted only by a three-year gap from 1999 to 2009—had polarized the country in ways that may take years to heal. Yaacov Yadgar, a political scientist at Oxford, noted that Netanyahu had elevated himself to a level "above good and evil" in the eyes of his supporters, much like Donald Trump. Netanyahu had spent his tenure attacking institutions that challenged him: the independent press, the opposition, and especially the Supreme Court. A 2020 survey found that 53.5 percent of Israelis believed democracy itself was at risk.
Yet Netanyahu leaves office with genuine accomplishments. He inherited an economy with 9.4 percent unemployment and a per capita GDP of $27,730 in 2009. Through financial reforms and free-market policies, he reduced unemployment to around 5 percent and raised per capita GDP to $47,600. Israel led the world in COVID-19 vaccination rates, with 57 percent of the population fully immunized. He also secured diplomatic agreements with five Arab nations—Bahrain, Oman, Sudan, the United Arab Emirates, and Morocco—expanding Israel's regional ties beyond Egypt and Jordan. These achievements will likely define how he wishes to be remembered.
Bennett's government faces formidable obstacles. His own party, Yamina, holds only six of the coalition's seats, meaning his actual influence remains uncertain. The coalition agreement stipulates that after two years, he will step aside and hand the prime minister's office to Yair Lapid, the centrist leader of the largest coalition party, Yesh Atid. Five of the eight coalition parties are led by former Netanyahu ministers. Daniel Levy, president of the Middle East Project think tank, observed that this is "an incredible heterogeneous coalition that disagrees on almost everything except removing Netanyahu. Now that he is gone, the fun begins." The government must navigate disputes over Gaza, the relationship between state and religion, Iran policy, and Jewish settlements in the West Bank—all while managing the expectations of a Biden administration that faces pressure from its own left wing to take a harder line on Israeli human rights concerns. Bennett, born to American immigrant parents, may find common ground with Washington, but his reputation as a fierce advocate for West Bank settlements complicates that relationship. For now, the coalition's primary task is simply to govern together, a feat that may prove harder than the feat of removing Netanyahu.
Citas Notables
If our destiny is to be in opposition, we will do so with our heads held high, we will topple this bad government and return to lead the country our way.— Benjamin Netanyahu, in his final speech to parliament
What is happening here is basically democracy. A new government is replacing the previous one. It is how things should work.— Naftali Bennett, responding to heckling during his inaugural address
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why did it take four elections and two years of deadlock before anyone could actually remove Netanyahu?
Because no single party or coalition could command a majority on its own. Netanyahu's Likud kept winning pluralities but never enough to govern alone, and his opponents were too fragmented to unite—until they realized the only thing they had in common was wanting him gone.
So they built a coalition just to get rid of one man? That seems fragile.
Extremely fragile. The coalition spans from radical left to nationalist right. They agree on almost nothing except that Netanyahu needed to leave. Once that goal is achieved, the real tensions surface—Gaza policy, Iran, settlements, religion and state.
What's remarkable about the Ra'am party joining?
It's the first time an Arab political party has formally participated in an Israeli government. For decades, Arab parties were treated as outside the system. This signals something shifting, though it's unclear how deep that shift runs.
Bennett seems like an odd choice to lead this coalition. His party is tiny.
That's exactly why he was chosen. His small size made him acceptable to everyone—he's not powerful enough to dominate, but he's right-wing enough that the left could stomach him as a temporary figurehead. In two years, he hands the job to Lapid, the centrist.
What does Netanyahu actually leave behind besides economic numbers?
A deeply polarized society. He made himself the center of every election, every debate. He attacked institutions that challenged him. Fifty-three percent of Israelis now believe democracy itself is in danger. That's the real legacy.