The mythical coalition he promised crumbled before it was even made. The “magician” as he is nicknamed
by his supporters had, it seemed, cast his final spell.
Fast forward to March, and in the early hours of yesterday morning Benjamin Netanyahu was a changed
man. Back were the cascades of glitter from the HQ ceilings, the dramatic embraces with his wife, bouquets
of helium filed balloons, and the jubilant crowds waving flags.
In an unprecedented third election in less than a year, he appeared to have broken the political stalemate
crippling the country, sweeping some 36 of the Knesset’s 120 seats – four more than September’s vote –
according to the initial results. His right-wing religious bloc of parties was the obvious front runner with 59
seats, just two shy of the 61 majority need to build a government.
“This is a victory against all the odds, because we stood against powerful forces,” Mr Netanyahu said,
confidently grabbing both sides of the lectern. “They already eulogised us. Our opponents said the
Netanyahu era is over.”
The prime minister is not out of the woods yet. He still needs to find two or more parliamentarians to defect
from the other side to form a government. But the centre-left bloc led by his chief rival Benny Gantz, Blue
and White, is trailing almost 10 seats behind him.
With an electorate who refuse to vote again, the pressure will be on the political elite to make something
work. And so, it was a stunning victory of sorts, as he said, “against all the odds”.
He focused on every single group where he could get a few thousand votes. He did this despite all the
charges against him. It’s incredible
Since the last vote Mr Netanyahu has been formally indicted on fraud, breach of trust and bribery across
three cases, charges he has vehemently dismissed. He is due in a court room in under two weeks.
He has been battered by accusations of attempting to shield himself from prosecution, including trying to
drive through controversial immunity legislation that critics said would de-fang the judiciary.
His opponents have also accused him of dragging the country through three elections, because he refused to
give up power: Blue and White agreed to form a unity government with Likud on the condition Mr
Netanyahu was no longer leader, because they do not believe he can stand trial and be prime minister at the
same time. And yet, despite all this, he seemed to triumph.
Mr Gantz was keen to make the point that Mr Netanyahu’s trial disqualifies him from serving as prime
minister.
A lot of the success was brilliant campaigning. Realising what was at stake in this elections cycle, Mr
Netanyahu fought for votes ruthlessly. He took Mr Gantz down in what Anshel Pfeffer, the author of
biography Bibi: The Turbulent Life and Times of Benjamin Netanyahu, called a “dirty smear campaign”,
including releasing doctored videos.
Simultaneously he zeroed in on key constituents – Ethiopian-Israelis, Russian communities, cannabis
lovers, cab drivers – to squeeze out the last few mandates.
“We were all saying Bibi is finished but he came back and regained almost everything he lost in the last
election in September,” Mr Pfeffer said. “He focused on every single group where he could get a few
thousand votes. He did this despite all the charges against him. It’s incredible.”