BICOM

Yesterday evening, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for elections to take place around eight months ahead of their scheduled date.

The announcement came as little surprise after Netanyahu failed to make significant progress in reaching an agreement within his coalition on the proposed 2013 budget. Failure to pass the annual budget in parliament would have automatically triggered elections. In a televised statement, Netanyahu alluded to the budgetary disagreement saying, “Sadly, parties and factions find it difficult to put aside their personal interests and prioritize national interests.”

He went on to announce, “I have decided that it is in Israel’s better interest to go to elections now and as quickly as possible … It is preferable for Israel to have a short election campaign of three months rather than what would effectively end up a year long campaign that would damage the Israeli economy.”

Elections had been scheduled for October 2013 and although disagreement on the budget was the immediate catalyst for Netanyahu’s announcement, it had been widely expected for several weeks that he would call for an early ballot. Netanyahu’s Likud Party enjoys a healthy lead in the polls and the centre-left opposition appears fractured between several parties. Furthermore, the passage of a budget which would have included deep cuts may well have proved damaging to Netanyahu’s popularity. The economy is expected to be a major campaign issue alongside the country’s national security, with Iran’s nuclear development widely perceived as a major threat.

Israel’s parliament will reconvene next week for its winter session, at which point it is expected to formally dissolve in advance of elections.