Yair Golan says he’s ready to work with allies to form government; said during campaign he’d sit with Ra’am but not PM’s bloc

Yair Golan, head of the left-wing Democrats party, says his faction is “ready to work with all our partners” to form a government, as exit polls project neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies nor the main opposition bloc reaching a majority in the Knesset.

The post on X does not explicitly mention the Arab-led Joint List, projected to win 11 seats, or the traditionalist Arab party Ra’am, which is projected to win 7, in the 120-seat parliament.

During the campaign, Golan repeatedly said The Democrats — projected to win 9-10 seats — would be willing to partner with Ra’am, unlike some others in the Zionist opposition bloc that has shunned both the Arab parties and the ultra-Orthodox ones.

He said he would not be willing to sit with Haredi parties or any members of the current government.

Commentators have also suggested the possibility of a unity government, with some combination of parties from both blocs, or a minority government, which — though inherently shaky — is possible within the Israeli system.

“The public has spoken, it has fired the Netanyahu government,” Golan writes on X, saying this is “a historic opportunity to establish a government of change in Israel, and we don’t intend to give it up.”

The party chief commends Israelis for “fighting in the streets for four years,” presumably referring to the massive demonstrations against the government’s proposed judicial overhaul in 2023, and protests for a hostage-ceasefire deal during the subsequent war with Hamas.

“We are ready to work with all our partners, to bridge the divides and take responsibility,” he says. “Now it’s our turn to do the work.”

The Zionist opposition bloc is projected by exit polls to win 52 seats, and Netanyahu’s bloc is projected to win 50.

Ariela Karmel contributed to this report.