Ohana schedules vote to replace himself as Knesset Speaker

Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana announced Tuesday evening that he has scheduled a plenum debate and vote on replacing the Speaker for next Tuesday, November 17, at 4:00 PM. The announcement follows a formal demand submitted by Yashar faction chairman MK Ro'i Folkman, who secured more than 61 signatures from MKs supporting the move.

"I received this evening an unusual request from 67 members of Knesset to place on the agenda a vote for the election of a Speaker for the 26th Knesset," Ohana said. "Therefore, I have set that next Tuesday, 17.11, at 16:00, with the opening of the Knesset plenum, a debate will be held followed by a vote."

Ohana added a pointed criticism of the emerging coalition's plans. "Regrettably, according to media reports, the unusual request to elect a Knesset Speaker outside the time of a government's swearing-in is intended to advance legislation that will grant enormous power to the Attorney General and will deepen further the imbalance between the elected echelon and the bureaucratic echelon," he said. "Despite my strong opposition to the intentions of the emerging coalition, I will act as I promised to honor the will of the majority of Knesset members, and the plenum will convene as stated in one week."

Yashar faction chairman MK Ro'i Folkman submitted the formal demand today to hold a vote on replacing the Knesset Speaker at the next session. Folkman succeeded in gathering more than 61 signatures from MKs supporting the move, a number that constitutes a majority in the Knesset and enables the vote to proceed.

The move comes against the backdrop of advancing contacts within the change bloc to form a new government headed by Gadi Eisenkot, who received the mandate from President Yitzchak Herzog two days ago. Replacing the Knesset Speaker is seen as a first and critical step on the path to swearing in the new government.

According to reports, after days of contacts and attempts to advance several candidates for the position, the parties in the change bloc reached an agreement that Matan Kahana, the former minister and incoming MK, will be appointed Knesset Speaker. The expected appointment has drawn criticism from some left-wing and protest activists, who have attacked Kahana over his past positions.

Joint List MKs demand replacement of Knesset Speaker (None)

In an interesting development, all 19 Arab MKs from the Joint List and Ra'am also signed the demand to replace the Knesset Speaker. The move indicates the Arab parties' willingness to support the political change, though it remains unclear whether this represents unconditional support or is part of broader negotiations.