Israel's parliament has voted to dissolve itself

Israel’s parliament the Knesset approved a bill on Wednesday to dissolve itself,  passing a preliminary bill with a massive 110-0 majority, potentially bringing forward by a few weeks the next national election, which surveys predict Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will lose. An election date is yet to be set but elections must be held within five months of the law’s passing, which would mean mid- to late-October at the latest. Israel is supposed to hold a national vote every four years but early elections have happened often. The last national election was in November 2022 and the next ballot is due at the latest on October 27.
After voting to dissolve parliament, members will have to agree on an election date. Political commentators in Israel say an election is likely in the first half of September but it could also be held nearer to the late October deadline. The vote came now because an ultra-Orthodox Jewish faction, traditionally a close political ally of Netanyahu, announced this month that it no longer sees the prime minister as a partner and will seek an early election. They said they were doing this because Netanyahu’s coalition had not kept a promise to pass a law that would exempt their community from mandatory service in Israel’s conscript military. At the same time, opposition parties have long sought to topple Netanyahu’s government. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not attend the vote, instead reportedly holding security consultations.
This has happened before. Before the 2022 election, Israel was caught in a series of inconclusive elections, holding five ballots in less than four years. Netanyahu’s main challenger is Naftali Bennett, a former aide who ousted Israel’s longest serving leader in a 2021 election and became prime minister himself. The right-wing Bennett has joined forces with centre-left Opposition Head Yair Lapid to form a new party, ‘Together’, now neck-and-neck with Netanyahu’s Likud. Another contender gaining in the polls is former military chief and centrist cabinet minister Gadi Eizenkot.
Netanyahu still faces a long-running corruption trial. Israel’s President Isaac Herzog is mediating talks to broker a plea dealing the case, which could see the 76-year-old Netanyahu retiring from politics as part of any agreement. His health could also be an issue. He recently disclosed that he was successfully treated for prostate cancer and in 2023 he was fitted with a pacemaker. Israel has also been at war with Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iran, fronts that remain volatile with possible impact on an election.