Golan declares opposition majority after Netanyahu bloc falls short
Democrats leader cites 65-seat coalition including Arab parties and urges immediate government formation.
By Mateo Thompson ·
Yair Golan, chairman of The Democrats, stated on Wednesday morning that the bloc led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lost the 2026 Knesset election. Golan argued that the opposition holds a majority when Arab parties are included in the coalition calculation.
According to data from the Central Elections Committee, the opposition bloc is projected to enter the Knesset with 47 seats. This group includes Yashar, B’Yachad, Yisrael Beytenu, and The Democrats. Golan’s party is projected to win nine seats in the upcoming session.
Arab political parties are expected to gain substantial representation in this election. Projections indicate that Ra’am will win six seats, while the Joint List will secure 12 seats. When these 18 seats are added to the 47 held by the opposition bloc, the total reaches 65 seats. This figure exceeds the 55 seats required to form a government in the 120-member Knesset.
Golan emphasized the mathematical certainty of this outcome. "Netanyahu lost. I know how to count to 120. 65 is more than 55. That's how Israeli democracy works. Period," he wrote. He called for the inclusion of Arab parties in the new government, describing it as a partnership with Israel's Arab citizens to serve all Israeli residents.
The Democrats leader also addressed potential coalition strategies on the right. He suggested that if Netanyahu intends to form a Zionist bloc, he must subtract the 16 Knesset members from non-Zionist Haredi parties from his own bloc's count. Golan asserted that the opposition now holds a majority, responsibility, and an opportunity to form a government of change.
MK Gilad Kariv of The Democrats echoed these sentiments in a post on X/Twitter. He described the morning after the elections as a different political reality for Israel. Kariv noted that the fully right-wing coalition lost quite a few seats and will likely be unable to form a government in a similar configuration to the previous one.
Kariv stated that a substantial majority of voters, by a margin of hundreds of thousands of votes, voted against Netanyahu. He said the opposition has grown stronger in representing both the liberal Jewish public and the Arab public. Kariv concluded that a huge segment of the Israeli public expects decisive action regarding the country's future, noting that Netanyahu and his partners must not continue leading the nation down the path they have taken over the past four years.
