Preliminary vote to dissolve Knesset not expected before next week, opposition source says

By Ariela Karmel

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13 May 2026, 2:18 pm

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Ariela Karmel is a political correspondent at The Times of Israel. She previously reported for Calcalist and Haaretz. She holds an MA in Middle Eastern and African History from Tel Aviv University and a BA in Political Science from the University of British Columbia.

The Knesset plenum in Jerusalem, May 13, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

A preliminary vote on dissolving the Knesset will not be held before next week at the earliest, despite opposition efforts to fast-track the legislation following a Haredi faction’s announcement yesterday that it would support early elections over the coalition’s failure to pass a draft exemption law, according to an opposition source with knowledge of the matter.

While opposition parties quickly submitted bills to dissolve the Knesset and urged Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana to hold a preliminary vote as early as today, the power to fast-track the legislation rests with Ohana, who has declined to do so, the source says.

Under Knesset procedures, bills must be submitted by Monday in order to be placed on the plenum agenda that same week. Since the opposition’s dissolution bills were submitted after this week’s deadline, the earliest a preliminary vote could take place is Monday, May 18, though Ohana will likely delay the vote until Wednesday that week, according to the source.

Even if the bill passes its preliminary reading, it would still need to undergo committee deliberations and clear multiple Knesset readings before becoming law, a process that could take weeks and be further stalled by the coalition which controls the committees where it would be discussed.

The speed of the process will largely depend on how much pressure the ultra-Orthodox parties place on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the coalition.

“They could tell Netanyahu that if he doesn’t advance the bill, they’ll start voting with the opposition, passing opposition legislation and embarrassing the government until it moves forward,” the source says.

However, if the opposition thinks the Haredi parties will backtrack and refuse to support the measure, it will likely withdraw the legislation, the source says, since a bill to dissolve the Knesset can only be brought to a vote once every six months.

Elections are currently slated for October 27. If the Knesset votes to dissolve itself, elections must be held within five months of the vote, with the Haredi parties reported to prefer elections for September.