With unity government, electoral reform finally takes center stage
Knesset committee established to examine the issue of electoral reform proposes gradually raising the electoral threshold from the current 2% to 4% by half percent increments, limiting the number of ministers and move toward a regional election system • Parliamentary and external bodies also submit reform proposals.
One of the main clauses contained in the national unity government agreement signed between Likud and Kadima last week states that “the parties commit themselves to working toward a fundamental reform of Israel’s system of government and establishing a government system that will increase government stability and governability.”
But what really lies behind these slogans? Which system of government are we talking about? Every reform proposal, be it submitted by the cabinet, the parliament or an external body, differs wildly from the next, and the gaps are wide. It is time to understand how they differ.
The current government, shortly after coming into power in 2009, appointed a special committee to examine the issue of governance. It was Justice Minister Yaakov Neeman who first headed the committee, but he was later replaced by Transportation and Road Safety Minister Yisrael Katz. Katz says that last week he met with Kadima representative MK Avi Dichter, and they reached an agreement on several points: a gradual increase of the electoral threshold — the minimum percentage of the vote that each party needs to win in order to enter the Knesset — which currently stands at 2 percent, by a half of a percentage point each election until it reaches 4%; a minimum majority of 65 MKs to enforce a no-confidence vote and limiting the number of cabinet ministers to 23 (currently there are 30 ministers).
The smaller Knesset factions — United Torah Judaism and the New National Religious Party – oppose raising the electoral threshold. Incidentally, such a move would require the Arab parties to appear as a single list in the Knesset in order to meet the new threshold. Katz himself believes that the election system should also be reformed — moving gradually toward a more regional system of elections. In the initial stage, only 20% of Knesset members would be selected by regional elections. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed support for this system, according to Katz.
The Israel Democracy Institute recently established a special forum, headed by retired Supreme Court President Meir Shamgar. The forum was attended by 80 individuals, including representatives of various sectors of society, who represented a wide range of opinions. The Institute’s president, Professor Arik Carmon, says “the modifications of the system of government are not an end, but rather a means to strengthen government stability. In order to stabilize the system and enable the government to implement long-term policies in various fields, the electoral threshold must gradually be raised from two percent to four. That is, in each election, it should rise by a half percent. This move will force smaller parties to band together. We suggest that there be no more than 18 ministers in the government and that a majority of 61 MKs will be required to topple the government by vote of no-confidence. In such an event, the opposition would have to enlist the support of 61 MKs to form an alternative government.”
Carmon noted that the Institute also favors the idea that half of the MKs be elected through regional elections and that only the head of the largest party would have the authority to assemble the coalition. This would bring about three major blocs — a right, center, and left — instead of multiple parties with similar platforms. Carmon also believes that a 14-month parliamentary training course should be a prerequisite for participation in party primaries.
Yisrael Beitenu has championed electoral reform for years, and this issue figured prominently in the coalition agreement that Yisrael Beitenu Chairman Avigdor Lieberman signed with Netanyahu when he joined the coalition in 2009. Yisrael Beitenu MK David Rotem, the Chairman of the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee and the party’s representative on the Governance Committee, has expressed skepticism over the process.
“I am not pinning too much hope on this committee because each one of its members wants to go in a different direction,” Rotem said, adding that his party has submitted a bill proposing a presidential system in which the vote for prime minister and the vote for a party would be two separate votes. This would mean that the prime minister would be voted directly by the public, and not by the virtue of being at the helm of the party that garnered the most votes. The electoral threshold would be raised to 10% and the opposition would need a minimum majority of 71 MKs to topple the government by a vote of no-confidence. Yisrael Beitenu’s proposal is reminiscent of the law for the direct election of the prime minister that was revoked in 2001, after two election cycles.
The organization Israel’s Hope — Reforming Israel’s Political System, headed by former Mossad chief Meir Dagan, has recently compiled a bill, based on the electoral reform proposed by Herzliya Interdisciplinary Center founder and President Professor Uriel Reichman and former Education Minister Amnon Rubinstein.
The proposal suggests raising the electoral threshold to 3% in order to ensure much greater governmental stability, and requiring a majority of 71 MKs (61% of the Knesset) to topple the government. The proposal further suggests limiting the number of ministers to 16, who, excluding the prime minister, would not be MKs, and incorporating a public hearing into the process of appointing ministers. Another stipulation is that the prime minister would be permitted to serve no more than two consecutive terms, and that 60 MKs would be elected in regional elections to be held in 17 precincts across Israel.
Dagan voiced optimism on Sunday, telling Israel Hayom that “I give credit to the Likud and to Kadima that they will be able to get these changes implemented. It will require a lot of effort and determination, but I am convinced that the current situation can’t continue.”
“In my former capacity [as Mossad chief] I saw up close the country’s decision-makers at work,” Dagan added. “The situation was that 70% of the government’s decisions were never implemented, and cabinet ministers are unable to implement the plans they presented.”
In the coalition agreement signed between the Likud and Kadima last week it was agreed that the electoral reform would be complete by the end of 2012, and implemented in the next election. In order for this agreement to actually materialize, the teams tasked with making it happen will have to work overtime in the coming months. You have to be very optimistic to believe that it will work.
…and the same fate awaits ALL these sham “reform” proposals. In 2001, “bulldozer” Ariel Sharon elbowed out a Netanyahu challenge for the PM’s office, by overturning the election laws with a simple majority. All of the proposed reforms are so modest as to be laughable, and you can bet that the incumbents will select the most minimal of even these minimal changes. As in other matters, Israelis are unlikely to change until after an A-bomb drops on Tel Aviv — and even then, I expect loopholes to make the changes of no effect.