From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, May 20, 2026
Lawmakers gather ahead of preliminary vote on legislation to dissolve Knesset
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleSam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
Lawmakers begin gathering in the plenum ahead of a preliminary vote on legislation to dissolve the Knesset, potentially triggering slightly earlier elections.
Thirteen separate bills to dissolve the Knesset, sponsored by both opposition and coalition lawmakers, are on today’s plenum agenda. The primary, government-backed dissolution bill does not specify an election date, which will be set by the Knesset House Committee.
The timeline for passing the bill remains unclear: the legislation could be pushed swiftly through the Knesset in the coming days, or delayed by political machinations.
If approved in preliminary votes, the various bills will likely be combined before being sent to committee for deliberations ahead of the next of the three Knesset readings it must pass before becoming law.
Dissolving the Knesset is not the only issue on the agenda today. Lawmakers are also set to vote on legislation dealing with a variety of other matters, including an opposition bill calling for the establishment of a state commission of inquiry into October 7 and a coalition bill aimed at streamlining the process of building new settlements.
The Times of Israel Community.