Israel Begins Forming New Government After Election Results Released

The official results of Israel's general election were handed over to President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday by the chairman of the Central Election Committee (CEC) and Supreme Court Justice Noam Sohlberg. This begins the process of forming a new government. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party and its allies had demanded a halt to the publication of the results, alleging electoral fraud. No one has won a clear majority in this election. In this regard, the president's role becomes important. At the ceremony held at the presidential residence, Sohlberg described attempts to cast doubt on the election results as a "real threat" to democracy. He said, "In recent days, we have heard voices that are casting doubt on the election results and undermining their legitimacy. This is a real threat. The foundations of electoral democracy include the peaceful transfer of power, which comes from respecting the will of the voters." Sohlberg stressed that even if suspicions of fraud are proven, "so much is the limited impact" that we have heard of such attempts to undermine the possible legitimacy of the election results. "