A new initiative is being advanced by right-wing party leaders aimed at breaking the political logjam, blocking Yesh Atid chairman Yair Lapid’s path to the premiership and preventing a fifth consecutive election.
The proposal was raised by Shas chairman Aryeh Deri and brought to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the weekend by Yamina chairman Naftali Bennett, Channel 12 reports, adding that the Likud leader was convinced to back the idea.
It would see a special election held for Israelis to pick the next prime minister. There would not be another election for the Knesset, which was held last month.
Netanyahu is hoping that with Bennett’s support for the initiative, it will have a majority to pass as a law in the Knesset.
Netanyahu consistently polls as the candidate most qualified for the position of premier, even though his numbers are well below 50 percent.
The last time a direct election was held in Israel for the premiership was in 2001.
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