Israel Opposition Seeks to Oust Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, Pushes for Early Vote

Israel's opposition parties are moving to replace Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, with several groups formally asking him to include the election of a new speaker on the agenda for the parliament's opening session on November 10.

Yisrael Beytenu and the Democrats were among the first to submit requests. Ohana, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party, said he would convene an early debate if at least 61 lawmakers signed a formal request.

“The customary time to elect a Knesset speaker is when the government is formed,” Ohana said in a statement addressed to leaders of the opposition bloc and Arab parties.

He added that if a majority of lawmakers requested an earlier vote, he would schedule the debate “no later than a week from now”.

Ohana also said he would not resist relinquishing the post, adding, “The media can stop promoting conspiracy theories.”

The Arab-majority Joint List subsequently announced that it would seek an urgent session to elect a new speaker. Gadi Eisenkot's Yashar party also submitted a letter to Ohana and began collecting signatures from incoming lawmakers in support of a vote, The Times of Israel reported.

OPPOSITION HAS THE NUMBERS, BUT NOT A CANDIDATE

The opposition's six parties secured 67 of the Knesset's 120 seats in last week's election, while Netanyahu and his allies lost their parliamentary majority. The numbers give the opposition enough support to elect a speaker through a simple-majority vote, provided its parties agree on a candidate.

The election of a Knesset Speaker is separate from the formation of a new government, which could take weeks or months. This means the opposition can replace Ohana as soon as the new parliament convenes, without waiting for government formation.

The speaker has considerable influence over parliamentary proceedings and, along with the deputy speakers, plays an important role in determining the legislative agenda. Ohana cannot prevent his replacement if a candidate secures the required majority.

However, the opposition has yet to agree on who should take the position.

Naftali Bennett's B'Yachad party has proposed outgoing Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, whose candidature is also backed by Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman.

Eisenkot's Yashar party, meanwhile, wants the post to go to one of its own lawmakers, a proposal that has been rejected by other opposition parties.

The disagreement over Lapid's candidature has left the opposition without a consensus choice, despite its numerical strength.

With inputs from ANI