It’s over…finally.
The Knesset voted to disband itself this morning, a little over 14 months after it convened and a year after the government was sworn in, sending the country reeling toward its fifth election since 2019, which is not set for November 1.
Foreign Minister and Alternate Prime Minister Yair Lapid will formally succeed Prime Minister Naftali Bennett as prime minister at midnight between tonight and tomorrow. He will hold the position through the elections and until a new coalition is formed.
Bennett, who led the Knesset for the past year, will become alternate prime minister. As reported on Matzav.com, Bennett announced on Wednesday that he was not seeking reelection, handing over the reins of the right-wing Yamina party to Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked.
The delays included contention over the Metro Bill and the US Visa Waiver Laws, which did not advance in the Knesset.
Labor and Yisrael Beiteinu left the plenum in the final vote on the dispersal in protest of the Metro Law.
Disputes over when to hold the fifth round of elections since 2019 also held up the vote..
Opposition Leader Bibi Netanyahu gave a speech before the vote, stating that “this is what happens when you mix together a fake right-wing party and extreme leftist parties, mix with the Joint List – that’s what you get.”
With reporting by i24 News.
{Matzav.com Israel}
