Consultations are underway with Rabbi Dov Lando, leader of the Lithuanian ultra-Orthodox public, on whether to support ousting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before elections with a constructive no-confidence motion. A United Torah Judaism official told ynet Monday that “we have not yet made a decision.”
In the opposition, where officials believe this is an attempt to pressure Netanyahu, lawmakers are prepared to vote for any alternative candidate for prime minister, including Benny Gantz. As of now, there are not 61 Knesset lawmakers who would vote in favor of forming an alternative government, since Shas continues to stand by Netanyahu and the bloc.
Shas chairman Aryeh Deri said earlier at his faction meeting that “we understand that the draft law will no longer pass in the current Knesset term. We are working toward elections on an agreed date.”
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Knesset plenary
(Photo: Danny Shem Tov / Noam Moskowitz, Knesset Spokesperson)
A constructive no-confidence motion is a proposal under which the government is toppled in a vote. The names of the prime minister and ministers are included in the motion itself, and a new government is then sworn in.
The ultra-Orthodox parties informed Netanyahu on Sunday that they no longer want the draft law. Political officials estimated that the reason is that the Haredi parties expect the law to be advanced without them. Degel HaTorah, with Lando’s backing, told Netanyahu and the coalition: “We have no faith that you will genuinely bring a draft law. We are not taking an active step in this.”
Five days ago, the coalition’s bill to dissolve the Knesset was approved in a preliminary reading in the plenum, following the ultra-Orthodox demand to move up the election over the draft law. A total of 110 Knesset members, from both the coalition and the opposition, supported the bill.
The approved proposal was sent to the Knesset Committee, from where it will return for a first reading. It will then go back to the committee, and only later be brought for second and third readings, when the election date will also be set.