PM Yair Lapid congratulates Netanyahu on election win

Prime Minister Yair Lapid conceded defeat to Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, congratulating the Likud leader on winning the election in a phone call. 

“The State of Israel is above any political consideration. I wish Netanyahu luck for the sake of the people of Israel and the State of Israel,” Lapid said.

Meanwhile Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban became the first foreign leader to congratulate Netanyahu.

“Mazel tov! What a great victory for Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel!” he tweets. “Hard times require strong leaders. Welcome back!” Orban said.

The final results of the election gave Netanyahu’s bloc a comfortable majority with 64 of the 120 seats in Knesset.

Netanyahu’s Likud party will be the biggest party with 32 seats, while his coalition partners in Religious Zionist became the third largest party in Knesset with 14 seats.

The two ultra-orthodox parties Shas and United Torah Judaism that make up the rest of Netanyahu’s coalition received 11 and 7 seats respectively.

According to reports in Israeli media, Netanyahu’s key confidant in Likud, Yariv Levin, has held coalition talks with lawmakers and party leaders in the bloc throughout the day.

At the same time, several lawmakers from the Netanyahu’s allies in the far-right Religious Zionism party made inflammatory remarks against the LGBTQ community.

Avi Moaz told Army Radio that his party wants to allow “psychological advice for those who don’t want to be gay,” while his party colleague Orit Strock said party will seek to “bring order to the public space. Regardless of pride, there shouldn’t be marches of people walking down the street naked or half naked.”

Speculations over ministry portfolios have flourished in the media since it became apparent that Netanyahu will return to as prime minister. Itamar Ben-Gvir, the no.2 in Religious Zionism and leader of the Jewish Power party, has demanded to be Public Security Minister.

Ynet reported that the leader of the ultra-orthodox Shas party, Arieh Dery, will be rewarded with the finance ministry portfolio for his “loyalty.”

Netanyahu is expected to receive the mandate to form a government next week, after an official ceremony held by President Isaac Herzog, who will consult with each of the 10 party leaders and receive their recommendations for prime minister.

Left-wing in shambles

After the final votes had been counted on Thursday, Meretz officially failed to cross the electoral threshold, receiving less than the 3,25% of the votes required.

Party leader Zehava Gal-On broke her silence shortly after, calling the election results a “disaster for Meretz, a disaster for the country and yes, a personal disaster for me too.”

“I pushed for a merger with (Labour chief) Merav Michaeli, and in recent days I warned Prime Minister Yair Lapid and his people that they were playing with fire (by seeking votes from the left). That if we were not careful, not only Meretz but the entire camp would pay the price,” Gal-On added.

Labour also disappointed in the elections, receiving the minimum of four seats in parliament. In a surprising turn of events, Michaeli admitted that Meretz’s party leader “unfortunately for all of us…. was right”.

She also attacked Lapid’s campaign which “destroyed Meretz and nearly destroyed Labor.”

The public “believed Lapid that it should strengthen him and not us. There was no reason for Labor and Meretz not to pass, but Yesh Atid worked against us, particularly on election day.”

Meretz lawmaker Esawi Frej attacked Michaeli after the election results, accusing her of “delusions of grandeur” and comparing herself to the late Labour Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

A senior Labour official told Ynet News that that Michaeli was a “colossal failure, and disconnected from reality,” while expecting her to draw the “obvious conclusions.”

Meanwhile, the Arab-Israeli Balad party also failed to cross the 3,25% electoral threshold.

Arab-Israeli parties Hadash and Ta’al received five seats, with a senior source party telling Jewish News that the development was troubling, but that it would continue to fight racism and fascism coming on the far-right.