Eisenkot to hold off on swearing in government until Knesset speaker is replaced

Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar party, does not intend to swear in a government this week, even if he manages to complete a coalition in that time, Ynet reported. According to the Hebrew news site, Eisenkot will instead wait until the Knesset, Israel's parliament, has a speaker drawn from his own political bloc. Ynet said one of the aims is to avoid any postponement of the date on which the new government takes office, and that the vote to replace the current speaker, Ohana of the Likud party, is expected to be held only next week.

Haaretz reported, citing sources in Eisenkot's party, that he is unlikely during the coming days to notify the president, Isaac Herzog, that his coalition is complete. The paper said this was despite Eisenkot pressing to set up an emergency cabinet made up of the parties in his bloc.

Who Eisenkot is and what Yashar is

Eisenkot heads Yashar, which in Hebrew means "straight" or "honest". The two reports describe him as the politician currently working to form Israel's next government at the head of a bloc of parties. The speaker's chair is held by Ohana of Likud, whom Eisenkot's camp wants to replace with someone from its own side. Haaretz places the story in its coverage of the Israeli election.

How a government takes office in Israel

Israel's government is not formed directly by the election result. After a vote, the president, a largely ceremonial head of state, gives a member of the Knesset the task of assembling a coalition. When that member has secured enough partners, they notify the president. The new government then has to be presented to the Knesset and win a vote of confidence there, at which point ministers are sworn in.

That final step happens in the Knesset chamber, which is why the identity of the speaker matters. The speaker presides over the plenary and has a central role in setting its agenda. Ynet's account links Eisenkot's timing to the goal of preventing a delay to the swearing-in. Neither report spells out exactly what such a delay would look like or how it might come about.

Two framings of the same decision

The two outlets describe the plan in slightly different terms. Ynet frames it around the swearing-in of the government and says Eisenkot will wait for the change of speaker even if his coalition is ready. Haaretz frames it around the earlier formal step of informing the president that a government has been formed, and attributes this to party sources. The reports are consistent with each other, but they focus on different points in the process, and only Haaretz mentions Eisenkot's push for an emergency cabinet drawn from his bloc.

The vote on the speaker

According to Ynet, the Knesset vote on replacing Ohana is expected next week rather than this week. That timetable is the reason the swearing-in is not expected sooner. Haaretz's headline describes Eisenkot as seeking to replace Likud's speaker before forming his government, which matches the sequence Ynet sets out: first the speaker, then the new government.

What the reports do not say

• Neither report names the candidate Eisenkot's bloc intends to put forward as the new speaker.
• No response from Ohana, Likud or President Herzog has been reported.
• Neither outlet gives a specific date for the speaker vote or for the swearing-in.
• The reports do not say whether coalition negotiations among the parties in Eisenkot's bloc have been completed, or what the proposed emergency cabinet would include.