After the Central Elections Committee publishes the final results of today’s (Tuesday) elections for the 26th Knesset, the process of forming the government will begin. President Isaac Herzog will meet with representatives of all parties elected to the Knesset in what’s known as the “recommenders’ parade,” where each faction will recommend the candidate it believes should form the government.
1+Within seven days of the results being published, the president assigns the task to the Knesset member he believes has the best chance of forming a government that will win the Knesset’s confidence. The law doesn’t require the president to assign the task to the head of the largest party.
The candidate who receives the assignment has 28 days to conduct coalition negotiations, sign agreements with partners, set the government’s basic guidelines, and divide up ministerial portfolios. The president can extend the period by up to 14 additional days. A successful candidate presents the government to the Knesset along with its basic guidelines and division of roles, and the government takes office only after winning the Knesset’s confidence. Until then, the outgoing government continues to serve.
1+If the first candidate fails, the president decides within three days whether to assign the task to another Knesset member or to notify the Knesset speaker that he sees no possibility of forming a government. A second candidate gets 28 days, with no option for extension. If that candidate also fails, or if the president has announced there’s no possibility of forming a government, a 21-day period opens during which the Knesset can intervene.
Within those 21 days, a majority of Knesset members—at least 61—can ask the president in writing to assign the task to a specific Knesset member who has agreed to it. The president must comply within two days, and the candidate has 14 days to form a government. If this attempt also fails, or if no such request was submitted, the Knesset is considered dissolved, and new elections are held within 90 days.