On February 22, 2009, an article on the issue of election system reform, by Izak Parviz Nazarian - Founder and President of CECI and member of the Forum for Government Stability - was published in the Calcalist newspaper.

Israel’s Election Results Prove Electoral System Failed Again

By Izak Parviz Nazarian 

The quandary with the recent election results for the Knesset does not reveal any new problems in Israel’s electoral system, it simply exacerbates the problems that everyone knows are already there.  These problems have created a dire situation which has erupted into a real emergency.  Clearly, the Israeli electoral system failed once again and the underlying problems of why it happened need to be addressed immediately.

The new political map shows the immense difficulty in establishing a coalition, especially a coalition that will be able to lead a clear defined line.  Even worse, the Knesset represents so many different opinions of fragmented groups that it is extremely difficult to address any specific desire or will of the voters. 

The issue of changing the electoral system has often emerged as an “empty slogan” by the politicians, but if the 18th Knesset does not elevate government and election system reform to a national top priority, a forced shaky coalition will push Israelis into another election in less than 2-3 years, and it will again be impossible to establish a stable government.

Various solutions to Israel’s government instability problem have already been proposed.  In 2005, The President of Israel’s Commission for the Examination of the Structure of Governance in Israel was created to propose recommendations to remedy the problem of government instability.  The Commission, headed by Professor Menachem Magidor, spent 15 months doing research and examining alternatives to Israel’s current electoral system.  In their final report, the Commission recommended that regional elections be held to elect half the MKs.  The idea is that if 50% of the MKs are elected in regional elections, there will be a stronger tie between representatives and the voters, and the MKs’ accountability toward their constituents will increase.  In addition to the suggestion for regional elections, some officials have proposed transitioning to a presidential system.  However, the concern about concentrating too much power into the hands of the head of the Executive Authority may deter many in the political and academic arenas. 

Increasing the voter’s threshold to 5% is a middle-of-road kind of reform that would reduce the number of smaller parties and thus promote and strengthen bigger parties.  Another such reform would be creating a perennial budget to eliminate the “circus of extortion”.

During a meeting with the members of The CECI Economic Forum for Government Stability, Kadima Chairperson Tzipi Livni stated that she does not reject the transition to a presidential system, but she remarked that Israel would need to make sure that appropriate checks and balances were in place and that the head of the Executive Authority could not serve for 4 years without the ability to replace him in extreme situations.    

Whatever solutions are implemented, whether it is a presidential system, 50% regional elections, an increase in the voter threshold, or a combination of remedies, etc., Israel needs to reform the electoral system and stabilize the government as soon as possible.  The only way to do this is by the larger parties agreeing to work together in creating new legislation, so the Knesset will be able to pass the necessary laws to secure government stability.

Izak Parviz Nazarian

Founder, The Citizens’ Empowerment Center in Israel (CECI)

Founder, The CECI Economic Forum for Government Stability