The Islamist Ra’am party, seen as a potential kingmaker in the wake of the March 23 election, does not recommend either Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid for prime minister.
But while abstaining, leader Mansour Abbas says that he is open to negotiations with any candidate who is ultimately tasked with forming a government.
“We tried to prevent the fourth elections and we will try to prevent the fifth elections,” he says, underlining that he supports the establishment of a government.
Ra’am, which has four seats, has previously expressed a desire to work together with either Netanyahu or his rivals — whichever offered a better deal benefiting Arab Israelis. Right-wing politicians in both blocs have ruled out basing a coalition on the party’s support, due to what they say is an anti-Zionist stance; others have accused Ra’am of supporting terrorists.
With Ra’am’s abstention, the consultations with the president end.
Netanyahu has received 52 recommendations, Lapid picked up 45, and Yamina leader Naftali Bennett has the backing of his seven party members.
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist
Support our work
Support our work
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
From the Liveblog of
Monday, April 5, 2021
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
