Two Arab-led parties could influence efforts to form Israel’s next government after the Oct. 27 election, but their leaders have set out different conditions for helping Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s opponents.
Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 projected 55 seats for Zionist opposition parties, 51 for parties aligned with Netanyahu and 14 for two Arab parties in its Oct. 19 poll. The Knesset has 120 seats, with 61 needed for a majority. Adding the Arab parties to groups outside Netanyahu’s bloc produces a combined 69-seat projection, but the figures do not show that those parties have agreed to govern together.
Mansour Abbas, head of Raam, told AFP that his party would work with the bloc led by Netanyahu’s main rival, Gadi Eisenkot, and would not join a coalition with Netanyahu. Abbas wants Raam to have influence in a future government so it can raise issues facing Arab society. He identified violent crime as a priority and said he hoped Raam would win about eight seats.
The Abraham Initiatives, a coexistence organization, said more than 170 Arab Israelis had been killed in 2026 by Oct. 24. AFP puts Arab Israelis at about 21% of Israel’s population and also refers to them as Palestinian citizens of Israel. The report said many in the community believe police inaction contributes to violent crime.
Yousef Jabareen, head of the Joint List, told AFP that his alliance could serve as a “safety net” for an alternative government, but would not offer a “blank check.” He said support would depend on opposition parties’ response to the list’s policy proposals. Jabareen said he did not foresee the alliance joining a government soon, citing the Gaza war, settler violence in the West Bank and policies targeting Arab citizens.
Raam joined an Israeli governing coalition in 2021, the first Arab party to do so. The Oct. 27 vote will set the seat totals and show whether either party can help shape the next government.
