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Israel's political system is based on proportional representation, and allows for a multi-party system, with numerous parties represented in the 120-seat Knesset.
A typical Knesset includes many factions represented. This is because of the low election threshold required for a seat – 1 percent of the vote from 1949 to 1992, 1.5 percent from 1992 to 2003, 2 percent from 2003 to 2014, and 3.25 percent since 2015. In the 2015 elections, for instance, ten parties or alliances cleared the threshold, and five of them won at least ten seats. The low threshold, in combination with the nationwide party-list system, makes it all but impossible for a single party to win the 61 seats needed for a majority government. No party has ever won a majority of seats in an election, the most being 56, won by the Alignment grouping in the 1969 elections (the Alignment had briefly held a majority of seats before the elections, following its formation in January 1969).
As a result, while only four parties (or their antecedents) have ever led governments, all Israeli governments, as of 2024 [update] , have been coalitions comprising two or more parties.
The following parties are represented following the 2022 election:
Party or alliance | Ideology | Symbol | Leader | Knesset | Status | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Likud [a] | מחל محل | Benjamin Netanyahu | 32 / 120 | Government | |||||
Yesh Atid | פה فه | Yair Lapid | 24 / 120 | Opposition | |||||
Shas [a] | שס شس | Aryeh Deri | 11 / 120 | Government | |||||
National Unity | Blue and White Israel Resilience Party | כן كن | Benny Gantz | 8 / 120 | Opposition | ||||
Mafdal – Religious Zionism [a] | ט ط | Bezalel Smotrich | 7 / 120 | Government | |||||
United Torah Judaism [a] | Agudat Yisrael | ג ج | Moshe Gafni | 7 / 120 | Government | ||||
Degel HaTorah | |||||||||
Otzma Yehudit [a] | Kahanism Ultranationalism Jewish supremacism [2] | Itamar Ben-Gvir | 6 / 120 | Government | |||||
Yisrael Beiteinu | ל ل | Avigdor Lieberman | 6 / 120 | Opposition | |||||
United Arab List | עם عم | Mansour Abbas | 5 / 120 | Opposition | |||||
Hadash– Ta'al | Hadash (Maki) |
| ום وم | Ayman Odeh | 5 / 120 | Opposition | |||
Ta'al | |||||||||
The Democrats [b] | Yair Golan | 4 / 120 | Opposition | ||||||
New Hope | ת ت | Gideon Sa'ar | 4 / 120 | Government | |||||
Noam [a] | כ | Avi Maoz | 1 / 120 | Government | |||||
The following parties do not have Knesset seats at present:
Name | Letter | Political position | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Hatzohar | ג | Right-wing | Original Revisionist Zionist party, disbanded after failing to cross the electoral threshold in the 1949 elections. |
Popular Arab Bloc | ת | Left-wing | Arab satellite list that ran in the 1949 elections. Affiliated with Mapam |
Tafnit | פ | Centre | Ran in the 2006 elections. |
Women's Party | נס | Centre-left to Left-wing | Ran in the 1977 elections. |
Yamin Yisrael | יד | Right-wing | Broke away from Moledet, another right-wing party, prior to the 1996 elections, but failed to cross the electoral threshold. |
The Arab List - The Center | צח | Centre | Arab satellite list that ran in the 1955 elections. Affiliated with General Zionists |
The following parties changed their names
Name | Meaning | Movement | Association | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Betar | League of Joseph Trumpeldor | Revisionist | Likud | Historically associated with Herut, and now Likud. | |
Bnei Akiva | Sons of Akiva | Religious | The Jewish Home | Historically associated with Mafdal, and now The Jewish Home. | |
Habonim Dror | The Builders of Freedom | Labor | Labor Party | Associated with the Labor Zionism and the United Kibbutz Movement, and unofficially with the Israeli Labor Party. | |
Hashomer Hatzair | The Young Guard | Labor | Meretz | Associated with the left faction of Labor Zionism, historically associated with Mapam and the Kibbutz Artzi movement, and unofficially with Meretz. | |
HaNoar HaOved VeHaLomed | The Working and Learning Youth | Labor | Labor Party | Associated with the Labor Zionist movement, Histadrut, and unofficially with the Israeli Labor Party. | |
Meretz Youth | Meretz Youth | Labor | Meretz | Youth wing of Meretz (under 18), now associated with The Democrats | |
Noar HaAvoda | Labor Youth | Labor | Labor Party | Young-wing of the Israeli Labor Party (under 18), now associated with The Democrats. | |
Noar HaIhud HaLeumi | National Union Youth | Religious | Religious Zionist | Youth wing of the Religious Zionist Party. | |
Noar HaGvaot | Hilltop Youth | Religious | Otzma Yehudit | Historically associated with Kach, and its various successor parties. | |
Noar Yesh Atid | Yesh Atid Youth | Liberal | Yesh Atid | Youth wing of Yesh Atid (under 18). | |
HaMahanot HaOlim | The Immigrants Camps | Labor | None | Associated with the Labor Zionist movement. | |
HaNoar HaTzioni | The Zionist Youth | Liberal | None | Historically associated with the General Zionists. | |
Ariel | Lion of God | Religious | Religious Zionist | Split from Bnei Akiva, unofficially associated with Religious Zionist Party. | |
HaNoar HaDati HaOved VeHaLomed | The Religious Working and Studying Youth | Religious | None | Founded in 1952, historically associated with Hapoel HaMizrachi. | |
Noar HaLikud | The Likud Youth | Revisionist | Likud | Youth wing of Likud (under 18). | |
Young Meretz | Young Meretz | Labor | Meretz | Young-wing of Meretz (18-35). | |
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