Joint List Figure Says Arab Parties Are Expected to Recommend Eisenkot

A senior Joint List figure said on Sunday that the Joint List and Ra’am were expected to recommend Gadi Eisenkot to form Israel’s next government during President Isaac Herzog’s consultations with parliamentary factions. No official party announcement of the recommendations had been received at the time of the report. The Joint List’s indication was described as informal, while Ra’am’s parallel recommendation remained an assessment. The report did not present the two parties as having issued formal decisions. Naftali Bennett and Avigdor Liberman had not yet made similarly unequivocal declarations about their recommendations. Herzog separately set out the next stage of the government-formation process on Sunday. His spokesperson said the president would receive the official election results on Wednesday, November 4, from Central Elections Committee chairman and Deputy Supreme Court President Justice Noam Sohlberg. Consultations with the factions would then begin at the President’s Residence, with all factions and parties welcome. Speaking at the state memorial for Chaim Weizmann at Weizmann House in Rehovot, Herzog said: “The election results are a fact.” He urged representatives to listen to one another, exchange ideas and seek creative solutions to prevent another election. He also called on them to approach the discussions with open minds and hearts.