Herzog Receives Certified Israeli Election Results and Opens Coalition Talks

Israeli President Isaac Herzog has received the certified official results of the October 27, 2026 election, and he has announced that he will begin consultations on assigning the mandate to form a government. Times of Israel

The mandate is the formal task of trying to assemble a governing coalition, meaning a group of parties that together hold a majority in parliament. In Israel the president does not pick the government himself. He decides which lawmaker gets the first attempt to build one, and that choice is the step now ahead.

Herzog has urged compromise to form a government after what has been described as a divisive election. He will meet party leaders over the next two days to decide whether to task Benjamin Netanyahu or a rival with forming the government. New York Times

Allies of Netanyahu have refused to back the confirmed result. Al Jazeera

Israel's opposition has united behind Eisenkot in efforts to form the next government. France 24 Opposition leaders have reaffirmed their support for recommending that Herzog give Eisenkot the first chance to form a government. Times of Israel The Haaretz newspaper reported that if both Arab parties in the Knesset, Israel's parliament, recommended Eisenkot, he would have the backing of 67 elected lawmakers. Haaretz

According to the Jerusalem Post, the consultations are scheduled to begin on Wednesday at 5 p.m. with Religious Zionism-Zehut, and to end with Likud at 8:30 p.m. the following day. Jerusalem Post