The Knesset, Israel’s Parliament

The Knesset is Israel’s parliament, and is the sole authority to pass laws, to supervise the government services, and to choose the President of Israel. The Knesset consists of 120 seats. Unlike the US and UK, members are not elected in a geographic district. Members of the Knesset are elected proportionally by party in a nation-wide general election. While on paper this seems extremely democratic and fair, in practice it turns out that small minority parties have far more influence on the government and laws than the majority populace of the country would like. Because of the percentages from the overall general electorate, no single party has ever had a majority of seats in government. Therefore, all governments have consisted of a coalition of parties with the largest party getting the premiership (Prime Minister). Due to the nature of the coalition government, if the minority government parties don’t have their demands embraced, they can withdraw from the government and cause it to collapse, sending the country to an early election. The current government consists of eight different parties. Two of the far-right government ministers who constantly make international news (and headaches for Israel) are Ben-Gvir, Minister of National Security, whose party has only 6 seats, and Smotrich, Minister of Finance, whose party has only 7 seats. By contrast the Prime Minister’s party has 32 seats of the 120 Knesset seats.

The Knesset is located in west Jerusalem within the 1948 boundaries of Israel (and therefore not in disputed territory). The last election was held on November 1, 2022 and if the government doesn’t collapse, the next election is scheduled for October 27, 2026.

Israel’s President is a ceremonial position similar to King Charles III of the United Kingdom. Currently, Isaac Herzog is Israel’s president.