Arab-led Joint List says it will back Eisenkot to form Israel's next government

The Joint List, an alliance of Arab-led parties in Israel, said on November 5, 2026 that it will recommend opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to form the country's next government. The alliance said it will tell President Isaac Herzog of the decision on Thursday evening.

The announcement follows last week's general election, in which Arab-led parties won a record 19 seats in the 120-seat parliament, the Knesset. The Joint List holds 11 of those seats. Ra'am, an Arab-led party with eight seats, said it would also recommend Eisenkot, who chairs the Yashar party.

Al Jazeera reported that with the Joint List's 11 recommendations, Eisenkot is expected to have the backing of 67 lawmakers, above the 61-seat majority needed in the Knesset. Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc holds 53 seats. Degel HaTorah, which holds four of the seven seats of United Torah Judaism, said it would recommend neither candidate.

Herzog has accepted the certified results of the election and has begun consultations with party leaders on whom to task with forming the government. Under the process, the nominee chosen to form a government has 28 days to do so, and can receive a possible 14-day extension.