Electoral Reform in Israel

by Emanuele Ottolenghi

Israel used to have a pure form of proportional representation, which encouraged political fragmentation, unstable coalition governments and extreme difficutly in reaching decisions on key issues such as peace and security. In 1992 the electoral system was reformed by providing for the direct election of the Prime Minister alongside the general election of political parties to the government. This reform exacerbated the problem it was intended to remedy and in 2001 Israel reverted to a modified form of its old electoral system. Emanuele Ottolenghi examines this period of reform and the lessons that can be learned from it.

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999