Liberman to Join Arab Parties for Knesset Speaker Role

Former minister Silvan Shalom is warning of the political scenarios that could unfold the day after the next elections. Speaking on the "Evening Diary" program with Doron Cohen on Galei Yisrael radio, Shalom analyzed the possibility of the opposition camp securing a parliamentary majority of 61 Knesset members with the support of the Arab parties, and pointed to the first move that would be implemented immediately upon the swearing-in of the Knesset.

"If they have sixty-one with the Arabs, the first vote on the day the Knesset is sworn in will be on electing the Knesset speaker," Shalom explained, emphasizing the political price that would be required to secure the support of the Yisrael Beiteinu chairman: "For Liberman to be with them, they will have to give Liberman the Knesset speakership."

Shalom explained that control of the Knesset speaker position is not merely a symbolic move, but a significant tool for setting the legislative agenda and advancing dramatic moves against the right-wing camp: "What does the Knesset speaker position give? The ability to pass all the laws they want, including a law for a state commission of inquiry."

The former minister detailed the legal mechanism through which the opposition is planning to bypass the government: "After all, today according to the law, only the government can establish a state commission of inquiry. Therefore, if there is a situation where they have a majority and they have their own Knesset speaker, they will go and legislate a law that determines that not only the government can establish a state commission of inquiry, but also the Knesset."