In this special episode, recorded live on October 28 as a Washington Institute panel, moderator Felicia Schwartz sits down with analysts Gili Cohen, David Makovsky, and Dennis Ross to understand the results and the policy implications of Israel's first election since Hamas's October 7, 2023, assault.
Is the bloc led by incumbent Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu or opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot better positioned to form a viable governing coalition? What drove the historic surge in voting by Arab citizens of Israel, and will they play an expanded role in Israeli politics? What are the implications of a possible renewed round of U.S. or Israeli bombing of Iran? Will the elections change anything in Gaza or spur Israel to rein in extremist settler violence in the West Bank? And what could a caretaker Netanyahu government, an Eisenkot-led coalition, or a national-unity government mean for waning American public support for Israel and the future of the U.S.-Israel relationship?
Gili Cohen is the diplomatic correspondent for Kan, Israel's public broadcaster.
David Makovsky is a former State Department official, the director of the Washington Institute's project on Arab-Israel relations, and the host of "Decision Points."
Ambassador Dennis Ross, the Washington Institute's counselor, served as the chief U.S. Middle East peace negotiator during the Clinton administration and as the top Middle East official on the National Security Council in the Obama administration.
Moderator: Felicia Schwartz is a national security reporter at MS NOW, and she formerly covered Israel and the Palestinian territories for The Wall Street Journal.
This episode is an edited version of the original October 28, 2026 event.
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