US midterm results make unity gov’t with Netanyahu impossible, Israeli opposition leaders claim

Following the catastrophic losses for Republicans in the U.S. midterm elections, including a series of wins by vocally anti-Israel Democratic candidates, several Israeli opposition leaders say this has had a significant impact on coalition talks in Israel.

Yair Lapid, the outgoing opposition leader and No. 2 in the Together (B'Yachad) party, said that the clash between Shin Bet and the attorney general, together with “the election results in America in the morning have one unexpected consequence: they eliminate any possibility of a unity government led by Netanyahu.”

“Israel cannot afford to let him remain prime minister,” Lapid said. “It endangers security, it endangers democracy, and it will devastate us internationally.”

Following the same logic, "The Democrats" party chairman Yair Golan said the midterm results “reveal just how toxic Netanyahu is among both Democrats and Republicans.”

Preferred Next Government 🟪Netanyahu-led unity: 34% 🟥Eisenkot-led minority: 16% 🟪Eisenkot-led unity: 14% 🗳️None, new elections: 34% via Direct Polls/i24, Nov. 2

— Israel Elects (@israel_elects) November 3, 2026

Israel's election results have produced an almost complete deadlock, with neither major bloc close to reaching a majority. This outcome has led to a wave of calls from commentators, columnists and public intellectuals for a unity government.

According to a poll by right-leaning i24 News, 34% of Israelis support a Netanyahu-led unity government, with another 14% wanting an Eisenkot-led unity government. However, 16% support an Eisenkot-led minority government, which needs support from either the ultra-Orthodox or the Arab parties.

Meanwhile, 34% said they want new elections, though the poll showed no major movement between the blocs just one week after Israelis cast their ballots.

In his statement, Golan added a warning. “The continued tenure of Netanyahu and Ben-Gvir could lead Israel down a path of international sanctions, international isolation, and a clash with the U.S., our friend and most important ally. Israel needs a government that will restore its standing in the world, promote long-term political-strategic arrangements, and ensure its security.”

“Netanyahu lost the elections. He is dangerous to Israel. We have no time to waste. We must form a government of change now,” he added.

Golan's party colleague, newly re-elected Knesset Member Gilad Kariv, argued that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “destroyed the relations with the Democratic Party and with half of the Republican Party… Anyone who continues to talk this morning about unity with Netanyahu does not understand the results of the elections in Israel, and does not understand the results of the elections in the United States.”

However, some political voices drew different conclusions from the midterm results. Yishai Fleisher, No. 12 on the Jewish Power (Otzma Yehudit) party list, noted that this is “a great time for American Jews to consider immigration (aliyah) to Israel (or at least buy property here in the Holy Land...).”

Yaakov Katz, a senior fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute, argued that the midterm results “demand a reckoning” in Israel as well.

“On the one hand, the midterms don’t change the numbers game in Israel when it comes to coalition building… But, the Democrats’ victory will create a sense of urgency that will influence the calculations of Israel’s opposition leaders – particularly Eisenkot, Bennett, Liberman and Lapid.”

Katz expressed his hope that the Israelis would recognize that “the policies of the current government are not just misguided."

"They are dangerous and damaging to Israel’s future… What Trump announced about the military aid yesterday is just the tip of the iceberg of what can change - arms sales could be blocked, sanctions will be proposed and joint economic programs defunded,” Katz added.

“The only real way forward is a different government - unity or not - but without the current players in their current roles,” he concluded.

Prof. Eugene Kontorovich of George Mason University, on the other hand, argued the midterm results demonstrate why Israel “should not go along willingly” with ending the aid, despite “good reasons” for doing so.

“Anti-Israel Democrats want to inflect pain and punishment. Conceding aid means they will just start at a harsher point” and “give them the satisfaction of ending it,” he warned on 𝕏.