Spare Your People a Fourth Election, O Israel, and Form a Minority Government

Abstract

Minority governments are thus not a panacea. They are weaker than majorities; they don’t last; and they complicate the business of parliamentary government. But at least they allow that business to take place and thereby produce a record of accomplishments and failures for voters to judge when the government falls after a couple of years. As I’ve argued elsewhere, Israel’s current crisis demonstrates the need for systemic reform of the country’s political and electoral framework of proportional representation. That system is clearly broken. But, first, Israel needs a government. At the very least, the clumsiness of a minority government would have the satisfyingly symbolic benefit of reflecting the very political deadlock and lack of consensus that prompted its formation, and thereby of best capturing the will of the Israeli people, who can’t quite make up their minds.