Yuli Edelstein
Yuli EdelsteinFlash 90

Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein (Likud) spoke about his initiative to cancel September's elections and form a government in the 21st Knesset.

"This process could happen only if we have very widescale support from most of the house parties," Edelstein told Reshet Bet Wednesday morning. "I come with clean hands, and not as anyone's emissary."

"Rabbi Rafi Peretz (United Right) spoke about the fact that he would do everything in order to prevent the [repeat] elections. Yesterday, Shas Chairman Aryeh Deri was with me in a meeting of the Elections Committee and said that these elections are completely unnecessary. He doesn't understand how we ended up in this situation.

"I'm not asking anyone to be altruistic, only to complete the process and sit and see if there is a possibility of forming a wide coalition in the Knesset without elections. If that is possible - we will talk about all the technical solutions. I will do everything in my power and I hope that I will find more than a few listening ears in the Knesset. I heard voices from most of the house parties, including from the opposition. We need to listen to what the public wants. That crosses parties, it crosses sectors, it's clear that this is the public's voice."

Blue and White leader MK Benny Gantz commented on Kan 11's report that his party had agreed to support canceling the elections and form a unity government together with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's Likud, in exchange for a rotation for the position of prime minister.

"It's a complete lie," Gantz wrote.

MK Yair Lapid, number two on Blue and White's list, tweeted, "There's no problem in forming a unity government. One person, only one, needs to move aside. To deal with his indictments. The Likud can appoint whoever it wants in his place: Yuli [Edelstein], Gideon [Sa'ar], Yisrael [Katz]. We'll have a unity government with at least 75 MKs. Lead by Blue and White. Stable. Fair. Working."

Blue and White's MK Ofer Shelah slammed the initiative: "Where is someone in the Likud who will tell Bibi 'enough'? Where is the one person in the Likud who will say 'enough?' The brave person who will tell Netanyahu: 'There's a limit. There's a limit to the embarrassment you can drag an entire country into, there's a limit to the depths you can drop a glorious political movement to.' We all know it's all a spin. There will be elections. Bibi has already begun to understand that he'll lose them. There will be a court case. There will be an end to the outrageous madness one person is dragging us all into."

"Where is the Likud's next leader, who will stand up and say, 'That's it, this is over?' Who will clarify that the party of [Menachem] Begin and [Yitzhak] Shamir, [Ariel] Sharon and the Bibi of old, will not suffer this circus? A minute afterwards there will suddenly be quiet and sanity. There will be a wide and strong government, without extremists and without noise. There will be a government which is worthy of the citizens of this country! If there would only be the one person, the one leader, the Likud candidate who will tell Bibi - this stops here!"

On Tuesday night, Edelstein said that the Knesset dissolution can be undone, canceling the upcoming elections, only if a majority greater than that which dissolved the Knesset supports recanting the law.

A total of 74 MKs supported the dissolution of the 21st Knesset and repeat elections.

"Continuing the election process is a breach of Israeli citizens' trust," Edelstein tweeted, adding that elections will cause "a loss of billions, and only because various party heads' personal reasons for ruling out [partners]. I have found a parliamentary draft and there is a way to cancel the most unnecessary elections in Israel's history."