President Reuven Rivlin announced tonight, Wednesday, that he has decided to entrust the work of forming the government to Chairman of Yesh Atid Yair Lapid.
"Last night, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed me that he was unable to form a government and he is returning the mandate to me. After receiving the position of all the factions and talking to MKs Yair Lapid and Naftali Bennett, it became clear to me that while Bennett was left with 7 recommendations, Lapid received 56. MK Mansour Abbas has written that he will cooperate positively with anyone who receives the highest number of recommendations," Rivlin said.
He further noted that Naftali Bennett did not rule out the possibility of participating in the government together with Lapid.
"It is clear from the picture of the recommendations that Lapid has the possibility of forming a government - even if there are many difficulties - whether it is a government that he will head first, or whether it will be another candidate, as the law allows."
Later in the evening, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will make a political statement.