The results of today’s (Tuesday) elections for the 26th Knesset won’t trigger an immediate changing of the guard. Under Israel’s Basic Law: The Government, after a new Knesset is elected, the outgoing government continues to fulfill its functions until the new government is sworn in. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his ministers will therefore keep serving throughout coalition negotiations—a process that could drag on for weeks.
The new government is formed only after the Knesset votes to approve it, and by law that’s when the new ministers take office. A minister from the outgoing government who wasn’t elected to the new Knesset will continue serving until then, because the law only requires the prime minister to be a Knesset member—other ministers don’t have to be parliament members. The government formation process itself, from the president assigning the task through the confidence vote, can take up to 42 days for the first candidate, and longer if an additional candidate is needed.
The Knesset speaker is replaced through a separate process. The new Knesset elects a speaker and deputy speakers from among its members, and until that election the outgoing speaker presides over sessions. The timing of the election isn’t set by law and usually depends on when the new Knesset majority comes together.