הגשמת חלום ראשות הממשלה בתמורה לראשו הפוליטי של נתניהו. בנט ולפיד
הגשמת חלום ראשות הממשלה בתמורה לראשו הפוליטי של נתניהו. בנט ולפידצילום: מרים אלסטר, פלאש 90

The legal advisor to the President’s office endorsed a call by the Likud to require that Opposition Leader Yair Lapid delineate all the details of a new government by the deadline in order to form a ruling coalition.

Attorney Michael Ravilo, working on behalf of the Likud, had petitioned the President’s office to require Lapid to enumerate the precise division of power in the planned government.

Lapid, who was tasked with forming a new government, has until midnight between Wednesday and Thursday to inform the president that he has secured majority support for a new government.

The Likud, however, had argued that Lapid must not only secure majority support by Wednesday night, he must also declare that he will be establishing a rotational government with Naftali Bennett, clarify who will serve as prime minister when and who as alternate prime minister, and which factions will be included in the government.

On Tuesday morning, Udit Corinaldi-Sirkis, the legal advisor to the President’s office, responded to the Likud petition, confirming that if the new government will include a power-sharing arrangement, the details must be included in Lapid’s declaration before midnight Wednesday.

However, Corinaldi-Sirkis did not accept the Likud's claim that because Lapid had been tasked with forming a government, he must serve first as prime minister in any rotational arrangement.

"In addition, under the Basic Law: The Government, only MK Lapid can serve first as prime minister, and he has no authority to transfer that position to [Yamina Chairman] MK [Naftali] Bennett, who was not tapped to form a government," the Likud had claimed.


“The Knesset Member who informs the president that he has succeeded in forming a government must state which factions the government will comprise, whether it will be an alternating government, and who will serve as alternate prime minister (in the case of an alternating government)," Corinaldi-Sirkis wrote in response.

“Regarding paragraph 5 of your letter – as you will surely remember, on that day (4 May 2021), you asked to confirm that it was acceptable to me that, when an alternating government is formed, the Knesset Member entrusted with forming a government can serve as alternate prime minister in the first period (before the changeover), based on paragraph 13א of Basic Law: The Government. I replied to you that this was also my legal position and that I agreed with you.”

“In short, I would like to note that this position is based on the letter of the law and on the meaning of Basic Law: The Government, both in general and specifically of paragraph 13א of the law, which deals with the establishment of an alternating government.”