Herzog Taps Eisenkot. Iran Remains the Test.

Written By TNT Staff, Posted on November 8, 2026

Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Saturday gave Yashar! chairman Gadi Eisenkot, a former IDF chief of staff, the mandate to form Israel’s next government. Parties representing 67 members of the Knesset recommended Eisenkot, while parties holding 46 seats backed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel Hayom reported. United Torah Judaism recommended neither.

Eisenkot’s initial mandate expires on Dec. 6. If he asks for an extension, the deadline is expected to be Dec. 20.

“This is the time to establish a national emergency government. I will do everything to ensure we are worthy of the responsibility,” Eisenkot said.

A mandate is not yet a government

Recommendations are not a coalition. Eisenkot’s core partners, Yashar!, B’Yachad, The Democrats and Yisrael Beytenu, hold 48 seats between them, short of the 61 needed, according to The Times of Israel. He has said any party or MK that accepts his four principles is welcome: Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, the values of the Declaration of Independence, mandatory service for all, and recognition of Hamas as a terrorist organization with a commitment to dismantling its military and governing power.

Netanyahu called for unity before Herzog’s decision, warning against a government “with supporters of terrorism.” Yashar! answered that Likud and its allies were welcome to join if they accepted Eisenkot’s principles. That argument belongs to Israeli voters and their elected representatives. What matters for Americans is what comes next on security.

What it means for the Iran war

Whoever leads Israel, the threat from Tehran does not change. Eisenkot is a former IDF chief of staff. His four principles commit any government he forms to fighting Hamas.

On Iran, The Jerusalem Post reports that Eisenkot has floated a public U.S. commitment to strike any movement around the sites where Iran’s 60% enriched uranium is still believed to be underground.

Repairing the American relationship

The Jerusalem Post also reports that a central goal for Eisenkot would be convincing both Democrats and Republicans that Israel is an asset to the United States, pointing to its role against Iran, Iraq, Syria and ISIS.

That matters in Washington right now. Vice President JD Vance listed changing America’s relationship with Israel among the reasons he says Republicans lost the midterms, and Democrats will control both chambers of Congress in January. An Israeli government that rebuilds bipartisan support would serve both countries. Iran’s regime has never distinguished between Israeli parties, and neither should America’s commitment to Israel’s security.

Sources: Israel Hayom; The Times of Israel; The Jerusalem Post.

TNT Staff