No need to wait 4 years
As we regularly have early elections anyway, why not make it the rule?
Since the end of the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Israelis have been hitting the polls every two and a half years on average. Most Knessets since that time did not complete their full four-year term. Prime ministers were forced to bring the elections forward not because they faced “investigations,” but rather, because of the simplest reason: They lost the public’s faith and, in turn, their ability to govern.
Politicians, commentators, and political scientists view unplanned elections every two and a half years as a sign of the malady maligning Israel’s democratic organism, or at least as a fundamental flaw.
A malady? A flaw? Not necessarily. There’s nothing holy about the myth of elections every four years. It is better to accept the public’s collective will as it has been revealed in practice since 1973 and change the time between elections to two and a half years through legislation. In other words: Knesset elections will be held every two and a half years instead of every four years.
The overwhelming reason in favor of doing this is a factual one: In the past decades elections were brought forward regularly, and this is expected to continue in the coming years. I merely suggest entrenching this custom, which has become an inseparable part of Israel’s political culture, via a new Basic Law.
The objectors to this move will immediately say: “This will cost us a fortune!” and “won’t allow for long-term policy planning!” However, the elections are being held every two and a half years anyway, and they cost plenty of money anyway. As to the politicians, they have internalized their brief terms in office and take it into account in their conduct. The political fear of the unknown prompts rashness and restlessness.
Israel is a dynamic country with a changing population, frequent wars, and a significant accumulation of social problems. Impatient Israeli voters judge their elected officials based on their performance in their first two years in office, and if they fail the public strongly demands that they be replaced. The public is unwilling to extend the mandate given to politicians because additional failures may be catastrophic and lethal.
Bad leaders should be replaced quickly
The anxious voters are right: In the name of what moral principle must we accept the ongoing service of a terrible prime minister, error-prone government, and negligent Knesset? They should be replaced quickly. The fate of the country is more important than adhering to a timetable.
Take a look at the business sector. CEOs and chairpersons tell us that they would not be able to manage a large company “without strategic planning for many years to come,” yet in practice they are being judged based on their quarterly reports, or the annual reports at most. Stock owners are allowed to replace them at any given moment, and often do it. The stock exchange votes for them or against them every day.
Israeli elections every two and a half years will not undermine government stability – in fact, they will boost it. When the “early elections” institution will no longer be around, every government will know it must excel from the day it was sworn in to the day it is dissolved. The ministers of such government will do everything in their power to fight bureaucratic foot-dragging, but will also keep in mind that losing the elections is not the end of the world – they may be back in power 30 months later. Their career prospects will improve, and so would their political restraint.
Elections every four years are in my view an aristocratic remnant of a bygone era. In terms of exposure to up-to-date information, a critical aspect when it comes to decision-making, we live in an era of faster changes than ever before. Yet democracy as a government system ignores the information revolution, remains stuck in place, and refuses to bid the old habits farewell even when the public openly rejects them.
I wonder how many times we shall have to see “early elections” every two and a half years before we finally realize that this is what Israeli voters, and particularly young voters educated in line with the start-up culture, want.
