28 days, then 14, then the Knesset's own pen

The final count left Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc on 53 seats, Gadi Eisenkot’s opposition bloc on 48 and the Arab-led parties on a record combined 19; 61 are needed for a majority in the 120-seat Knesset^2,3. Turnout was 77.7%, up 7.1% from 2022, according to Central Elections Committee figures reported by the Jerusalem Post³. Coalition talk will fill the airwaves. The more useful document is the timetable the law already sets out.

Round one. Once results are certified, the president has seven days to choose a candidate, by 11 November at the latest¹. That person gets 28 days, extendable by up to 14, so 42 at most¹. Officials at the President’s Residence stress that the mandate need not go to the leader of the largest party, and say Isaac Herzog may begin quiet contacts as early as Friday, before formal consultations¹.

Round two. If the first candidate fails, the president can hand the task to another member of the Knesset, who gets 28 days with no extension, or tell the Speaker that he sees no viable government¹. Round three. A majority of members can then ask him in writing, within 21 days, to give the mandate to a named lawmaker who has agreed in writing; that person gets 14 days¹. Only if that also fails is the Knesset treated as having dissolved itself, with an election within 90 days¹.

The pace is not unusual. Previous government formations have taken between 20 and 100 days, according to the Israel Democracy Institute, as cited by CNBC². Meanwhile the parties are doing the unglamorous part: Yair Golan of the Democrats met Ra’am’s Mansour Abbas on Thursday to discuss a possible partnership³, and the new Knesset is due to be sworn in on 10 November².

For you, the reassuring point is the dull one. A long stalemate could leave Netanyahu in office as caretaker, CNBC notes², but nobody gets to improvise the rules. Every stage has a date, a responsible office and a fallback. Herzog’s own line is the right test for everyone who walks in: come “with an open mind”¹.