Israel to vote in third polls in a year

Israel’s political system was facing an unprecedented crisis yesterday, after the country’s politicians failed to form a government and dissolved for a new election -- the third in a year.

Less than three months after an inconclusive general election, with both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and challenger Benny Gantz failing to form a governing coalition, the Israeli parliament dissolved itself in the early hours of yesterday, setting a new vote for March 2.

The September election followed a similarly deadlocked vote in April and opinion polls suggested next year’s vote could again be tight, with neither Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc nor Gantz’s centre-left alliance currently on course for a majority.

Pro-Netanyahu newspaper Israel Hayom labelled the deadlock a “circus” on its front page yesterday.

For Netanyahu, who was last month indicted on a series of corruption charges, the immediate challenge is to make sure he leads his Likud party into the election -- with a leadership primary set for later this month.

In September, Gantz’s Blue and White alliance won 33 seats in the 120-member parliament, while Netanyahu’s Likud got 32.

Opinion polls found that around 40 percent of respondents blamed Netanyahu primarily for the deadlock, with only 5 percent naming Gantz as the main cause.