Articles

With the Knesset set to vote on a new government on Sunday, Prof. Ofer Kenig, a research fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute, presents an following analysis of the proposed government.

There are no provisions for limiting the tenure of prime ministers in parliamentary democracies such as Israel, and any new rules must be objective and not made to satisfy political needs

If a new government is formed Israelis think that strengthening unity and closing socioeconomic gaps are the highest priority

If the “coalition for change” led by Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid does indeed come into being, it will be a rara avis on the national scene, with the potential to extract us from the political imbroglio we have been mired in for the past two years and more.

Israel needs a president who will position social solidarity and common purpose as supreme values as an alternative to the toxic competition between the competing political blocs that have held the Israeli people hostage.

Should guilt be determined by intent or outcome?

A government headed by a prime minister who leads small faction in the Knesset - how exceptional is such a scenario and to what extent is it prevalent in parliamentary systems? Prof. Ofer Kenig analyzes examples of parliamentary democracies where the prime minister hails from a small party.

The race for the election of the 11th President of Israel has officially begun. After the large number of candidates in the race that took place 7 years ago, this time only two will compete: Yitzhak Herzog and Miriam Peretz. Most of the candidates who have run for the presidency throughout Israel's history have had a political-partisan background; Most of them were men, aged sixty plus.

Who elects the president? What are the candidacy requirements? What majority is needed to win the election, and how is it obtained? With the approach of the 2021 presidential elections, Prof. Ofer Kenig explains some of the basics.

As Israel approaches the election of its 11th president, Prof. Ofer Kenig surveys the results of past presidential elections and argues that although the role of the Israeli president is largely ceremonial, the race for the position is partisan and political.

78% of Israelis approve of the military's execution in Gaza, but only 31% of Israelis think a good job was done communicating the operation's goals to international audiences

Israel’s responses in each of these two arenas, internally in Israeli cities and externally vis-à-vis Gaza, may have dramatic consequences for the future. The ultimate goal of Hamas is to drag the “Arabs of 1948” (Israel’s Arab citizens) into the conflict. Even today, it is important to note the growing desire of the majority of Arab citizens to integrate in Israeli society, and to drive a wedge between them and the leaders in Gaza

The horrific violence that has erupted over the past few days between Israel's Jewish and Arab citizens came as a surprise to many - not so much to the Arab residents of the 'mixed cities'.

IDI experts answer questions on the balance of powers at the Security Council, whether any dramatic resolutions can be expected, and the extent to which the debate and international pressure effect the IDF.

The recent clashes in a capital where even the smallest spark can set its streets ablaze are a direct result of the city's long-term neglect of its disadvantaged Palestinian residents, among whom poverty rates are double that of Jewish Jerusalemites.

The prime minister who once presented Arab political leaders as a threat has legitimized them as potential coalition partners.

Can one regulator rule Israel’s cyber ecosystem?

With coalition negotiations faltering, the April Israeli Voice Index finds that 70% of Israelis think the country is on the way to a fifth election.

The education system must cultivate political and civic literacy of today’s pupils and tomorrow’s citizens

Had Israel adopted a number of reforms proposed in recent decades, today we would have a stable government and a budget—without a fourth election, without a political imbroglio, and without caretaker governments.

Though this handful of demonstrators is not representative of ultra-Orthodox society as a whole, it reflects a growing trend among young ultra-Orthodox men who find an outlet in right-wing protests.

The recent elections proved, once again—especially against the backdrop of the Joint List’s meteoric success a year ago—the weakness of the parties’ base on the Arab street.

The disregard shown for the Basic Law of Government, signed coalition agreements and the Attorney General’s legal ruling is unacceptable - agreement must be reached in appointing a Minister of Justice

The pandemic offers a chance for much-needed educational reform, but the hasty return is raising fears that the opportunities presented by the crisis for truly driving the education system forward into the 21st century are being missed

The decision not to convene the Arrangements Committee prevents the Knesset from conducting itself as a legislative body and performing its oversight duties

In the March 2021 elections, Israel's fourth in two years, voter turnout was down throughout the country. Yet a comparison to the last round of elections in 2020 shows how a more substantial downturn in voting in religious and rightwing strongholds resulted in a significant weakening of Netanyahu's Likud party.

In an age of waning trust in state institutions and an ongoing health and democratic crisis, the public must be able to look towards the courts as a staunch defender of human rights and democratic structure.

One of the most striking elements to emerge from the preliminary results is that the current Knesset is going to be much more fragmented

Prof. Ofer Kenig presents examples of parliamentary democracies in which the Prime Minister is from a small party.

Four elections in two years failed to produce decisive results - what's wrong with Israel's political system and is there is any way out of its current political stalemate?