Shas Recommends Netanyahu to Herzog to Form Government

Shas has formally recommended Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to President Isaac Herzog as its candidate to form Israel's next government. The party also called for a national unity government. With Shas on board, Netanyahu leads the recommendations 11–0 so far.

The endorsement rests on a decision by the party's Council of Torah Sages, the Moetzes Chachmei HaTorah. The rabbis tied their backing to Netanyahu's renewed commitment to give yeshiva students legal protection.

Shas made the council's position public on Tuesday in a party statement:

"In light of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's clear and unequivocal statement reaffirming his continued support and commitment to regulating the status of Torah scholars, the Shas Council of Torah Sages has decided to recommend him to the President as its candidate to form the government."

The decision followed a sharp statement from Netanyahu aimed at opposition leaders. They had met in Herzliya and agreed not to rule out coalition negotiations with the haredi parties. Netanyahu accused them of hypocrisy after a campaign in which they had attacked the haredi community over military conscription.

"The hypocrisy we are witnessing now is outrageous. Suddenly, it's no longer a 'draft evasion law,' but a 'soft conscription law.' Suddenly, they are no longer 'parasites,' 'draft dodgers,' or 'destroyers of the state,' but are being given a completely clean slate," Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu pledged to keep advancing an arrangement under which full-time yeshiva students could continue learning, while haredi men who are not studying would enlist in the IDF. Yeshiva World News reported that he described the framework as one in which individuals could "enter Chareidi and leave Chareidi." He also declared: "We will work to complete this important mission."

Shas paired its endorsement with an attack on the opposition. "The hypocrisy of the left-wing parties cries out to Heaven, after they led an unprecedented campaign of vilification, defamation, and persecution against the Chareidi community and Torah learners, who are the bedrock of the Jewish people's existence," the party stated.

Herzog's consultations will decide who gets the first chance to build a coalition. Under the certified results, Netanyahu's bloc holds 53 seats, Gadi Eisenkot's bloc has 48, and the Arab parties have 19. Neither camp reaches the 61 seats needed for a majority in the 120-member Knesset. Herzog began meeting the factions of the 26th Knesset on Wednesday evening.

United Torah Judaism, which holds seven seats in Netanyahu's bloc, has not yet announced its recommendation. Matzav reported that Netanyahu spoke on Tuesday morning with UTJ chairman MK Yaakov Asher. Asher reportedly told him the party would wait for the Gedolei Yisroel to return from a trip abroad before deciding. In that call, Netanyahu reiterated his commitment to completing the draft legislation. He also warned against a government that depends on parties he accused of supporting terrorism.

Opposition leaders, including Eisenkot, Naftali Bennett, Yair Lapid and Avigdor Lieberman, are exploring ways to form a government without Netanyahu. Those discussions have included the possibility of winning support from haredi lawmakers.

Elsewhere on the right, Bezalel Smotrich's Religious Zionism announced on Tuesday that it would recommend Netanyahu. The party called for a broad Jewish coalition under his leadership, arguing that he heads both the largest party and the largest bloc. Itamar Ben Gvir's Otzma Yehudit also confirmed its support for another Netanyahu term. Eisenkot, however, is expected to receive the most recommendations overall, though that would not guarantee he can form a government.

Shas enters the talks diminished. It won just six seats, down from 11 in the outgoing Knesset. On Wednesday, party chairman Aryeh Deri submitted a letter asking to step down after the result, and the Council of Torah Sages convened in emergency session in Jerusalem. Shas later denied that Deri was leaving the Knesset or the party leadership.