In the parliamentary elections held in Israel, the right-wing coalition bloc led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu won 53 mandates. The opposition's "Change Bloc" led by Gadi Eisenkot managed to secure 47 seats. The most striking result of the elections was the high voter turnout and historic success of the Arab community in Israel.
Modern.az reports that Turkey's "Milliyet" newspaper investigated the political position of Arabs living in Israel, their place in the country's 78-year history, and the role they could play in forming the government after the last parliamentary elections.
According to the election results, the total representation of Arab parties in the Israeli parliament increased to 19. The inability of any political bloc to achieve the 61-mandate majority required to form a government has turned Arab parties into decisive actors in possible coalition scenarios.
Who are the "Arabs inside"?
When the state of Israel was founded 78 years ago, in 1948, the region was divided between Jews and Arabs. However, after the war that broke out that year, Israel's borders expanded.
During that period, significant changes occurred in the territories of the British Mandate of Palestine, where approximately 1.2 million Arabs lived. During the process that Arabs call the "Nakba" (Great Catastrophe), more than 700,000 people were displaced from their homes. Approximately 150,000 Arabs who remained within Israel's expanding borders eventually received Israeli citizenship.
However, unlike Jewish citizens, this population was forced to live under military rule and a state of emergency for 18 years, until 1966.
After Israel took control of East Jerusalem in 1967, Arabs living in that area also became part of this process.
As a result of these historical processes, Arabs today constitute approximately 21 percent of Israel's population. We are talking about Arab citizens of Israel, whose numbers reach 2 million.
Although a significant portion of Israeli Arabs are Sunni Muslims, there are also Christians and Druze among them who have a stronger Israeli identity.
This community maintains deep historical, cultural, and family ties with Palestinians living in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem, as well as with the Palestinian diaspora in countries such as Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria.
In Israeli government documents and the country's media, this population is mainly referred to as "Israeli Arabs" or simply "Arabs." However, these terms are not accepted by all members of the community.
A significant portion of citizens identify themselves as "Palestinians who are citizens of Israel." Others completely reject the Israeli identity and use only the term "Palestinian."
Palestinians and other representatives of the Arab world refer to this population that remained within Israel's borders after 1948 as "Arabs inside" or "48 Arabs."
More than half of Arab families in Israel live below the poverty line. Among Jewish families, this figure is approximately 20 percent.
Record participation from Arab voters
Although there are political parties representing Arabs in Israel, due to the low interest of Arab citizens in elections, these parties had only been able to obtain a maximum of 15 mandates in parliament until the elections of October 27, 2026.
The still unfinalized results of the last elections show that Arab parties have won at least 19 mandates.
Experts believe that Arab voters, who did not want the current prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to return to office, participated more actively in the voting this time.
Due to the very small difference in the results, it has become difficult for both Eisenkot and Netanyahu to make political decisions without taking Arab parties into account as before.
Arab parties, which remained ineffective in the Israeli parliament - the Knesset - for many years, faced numerous obstacles in the process of conducting independent political activity.
Over time, although Arabs rose to positions such as judges, ambassadors, and mayors, their ability to influence decision-making remained limited. Complaints about crime rates and infrastructure problems were often overlooked, and the parties they represented were not admitted to coalition governments.
This situation changed for the first time in 2021. The "United Arab List" bloc took a historic step by joining the coalition that removed Netanyahu from power in exchange for the implementation of certain reforms.
Elections ended, political struggle began
Although the elections in Israel have ended, the country's political future is still uncertain. While Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seeks ways to remain in power, his rival, former Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, tries to turn his promise of change into a government.
However, the election results show that Israel has not been able to overcome deep political and social polarization. Moreover, the rise of Arab-Palestinian parties, the most striking event of the elections, is not enough to resolve the government formation crisis.
Israel faces three main choices: the formation of a minority government with the support of Arab parties, Netanyahu and his rivals agreeing to form a unity government, or holding new elections in the country.
The first option is becoming increasingly difficult, while the other two scenarios are becoming the main directions of the political struggle.
Netanyahu's plan
Netanyahu thanked his right-wing allies on election night and stated the "importance of uniting the Zionist majority."
This statement is interpreted not only as an evaluation of the elections but also as an indicator of the political strategy of the new era.
Netanyahu tries to maintain an alliance with far-right politicians Ben-Gvir and Smotrich, as well as ultra-Orthodox parties, on the one hand. On the other hand, he keeps the door open to opposition right-wing and centrist parties.
However, Netanyahu's main problem is his inability to secure the necessary majority to form a government with his current allies.
For this reason, a change in the position of Eisenkot or one of the other opposition leaders is considered one of the options that could ensure Netanyahu remains in power.
Netanyahu also has another advantage: until a new government is formed, he will continue to serve as interim prime minister.
This situation does not necessarily turn the prolongation of the political crisis into a loss for him.
Eisenkot's dilemma
Gadi Eisenkot stated on election night that the Israeli people want change and that Netanyahu must step down.
However, the picture that emerged after the elections shows that forming a change government will not be easy.
One of Eisenkot's options is to form a minority government with the support of Arab-Palestinian parties. However, opposition right-wing leaders Naftali Bennett and Avigdor Liberman have announced their opposition to a government relying on the support of Arab parties.
The formation of such a government requires the active support of the RAAM party led by Mansour Abbas, and at least that the "United List" does not hinder the formation of the government.
This formula depends not only on the position of Arab parties but also on the ability of Jewish parties opposed to Netanyahu to act together.
The main contradiction facing Eisenkot is clear: he needs Arab parties to remove Netanyahu from power, but a part of his political allies does not accept their support.
Will a unity government be formed?
One of the increasingly discussed options in Israel is Netanyahu being represented in the same government with his rivals.
However, this does not seem easy.
Gadi Eisenkot and other opposition leaders stated during the election campaign that they would not form a government with Netanyahu.
Especially in the formula of rotating prime ministership, the possibility that Netanyahu could break the agreement is discussed. In such a case, the parties joining the government from the opposition could lose both the opportunity to become prime minister and the trust of their voters.
President Isaac Herzog promoting an agreement between the parties and US President Donald Trump intervening in the political process are among the possibilities.
However, there is no concrete initiative in this direction yet.
At the heart of the discussions about a unity government lies one question: can political leaders in Israel who do not trust each other overcome the deep polarization in society and create a common governance system?
Arab voters: We are here too!
One of the most important events of the elections was the massive participation of Arab-Palestinian voters in the voting.
The increase in voter turnout in Nazareth, Umm al-Fahm, and other Arab cities shows that voters who have long been alienated from politics want to be represented again.
This rise was not only due to being against Netanyahu.
The Gaza war, the violence of Jewish settlers in the West Bank, the statements of far-right ministers against Arabs, and the Palestinian issue are among the main factors that mobilized voters.
In addition, increasing organized crime, murders, economic inequality, and problems in public services in Arab society also affected voter turnout.
There are significant political differences between the RAAM party led by Mansour Abbas and the "United List" parties.
M. Abbas advocates for participating in government processes to find concrete solutions to the problems of Arab citizens.
His announcement of contacts with both blocs after the elections indicates that he has not closed the door to coalition talks.
The "United List," on the other hand, wants to prevent Netanyahu from returning to power but is more cautious about becoming a direct government partner.
Ahmed Tibi's phrase "Either Bibi or Tibi" on election night was a symbolic message demonstrating the new political weight of Arab parties.
However, one of the main contradictions of Israeli politics manifests itself here: Arab-Palestinian parties are gaining strength in parliament, but a significant portion of Jewish parties does not want to accept them as legitimate coalition partners.
The picture that emerged after the elections in Israel reveals a deeply fragmented society and political leaders who do not want to form a government with each other.
Netanyahu tries to maintain his power, Eisenkot wants to turn the demand for change into a political majority. Arab-Palestinian parties, on the other hand, demand that the power they gained in the elections influence political decisions.
A.Gorkhmaz
