The formal certification of the election results followed a comprehensive investigation that found no irregularities affecting the integrity of the vote. Israeli President Isaac Herzog commenced talks with party leaders, where three religious-nationalist groups backed Benjamin Netanyahu and a fourth supported opposition rival Gadi Eisenkot. Eight more political parties are slated to hold consultations on Thursday before the president designates a candidate. Concurrently, the attorney general blocked intelligence service requests to interrogate Arab lawmakers over foreign interference allegations due to a total lack of supporting evidence.
Key points
Formal acceptance of the certified election outcome deals a critical blow to Benjamin Net…: Formal acceptance of the certified election outcome deals a critical blow to Benjamin Netanyahu's unproven claims of systemic voting fraud.
Isaac Herzog must select a prospective prime minister following consultations with eight…: Isaac Herzog must select a prospective prime minister following consultations with eight additional factions, including two Arab-led parties.
Legal authorities pushed back against intelligence agency efforts to probe lawmakers amid…: Legal authorities pushed back against intelligence agency efforts to probe lawmakers amid unsubstantiated claims regarding foreign funds entering the country.
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JERUSALEM: Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday (Nov 4) accepted the certified results of last week’s parliamentary elections as legally binding and began consultations with party representatives on forming a new government.
The move dealt a blow to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s efforts to discredit the vote, in which he and his allies lost their majority in parliament, known as the Knesset, while Arab-led parties made historic gains.
“The elections are over. Now is the time to face reality,” Herzog said.
Netanyahu and his supporters have repeatedly made unsubstantiated claims that Arab-led parties had “stolen” the election, possibly with foreign assistance.
Herzog began consultations with party leaders on Wednesday night to determine whom to designate to form a government - a process that could bring Netanyahu’s opponents to power.
COMMISSION FINDS NO FRAUD IN ISRAEL'S ELECTION
Israel’s elections commission said earlier on Wednesday that after a thorough investigation of all parties’ claims of fraud, it had found “no evidence of irregularities that compromised the integrity of the election or affected its results.”
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