Israelis were grappling on Thursday with the confounding reality of unprecedented third national elections in less than a year, after Parliament was dissolved and the date for the next vote was set - further extending months of political paralysis that has gripped the country.
Legislators passed a motion earlier to hold elections on March 2, hours after the deadline to form a coalition government expired. The motion passed with a 94-0 vote in the house.
That now triggers a nearly three-month-long campaign ahead of the vote that most polls predict will not produce dramatically different results that led to the current logjam.