Trump: Netanyahu in ‘Pretty Good Shape’; May Help Broker Unity Government

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in “pretty good shape now” after defying election projections and indicated he would consider helping broker a national unity government as Israel’s political factions struggled to assemble a governing majority.

Netanyahu’s Likud emerged as Israel’s largest party, while his governing coalition performed considerably better than several major polls had projected, strengthening the prime minister’s political position but leaving him short of the 61 seats needed to form a government.

The deadlock has intensified discussion of a national unity government, with Israeli President Isaac Herzog urging political leaders to avoid another election even as Netanyahu’s principal rivals resist joining him.

Speaking in a brief interview with Axios, Trump said he initially received “horror reports” about Netanyahu’s electoral prospects before learning that the prime minister had fared considerably better than suggested by early election-night projections.

“He’s in pretty good shape now,” Trump said.

“I heard my endorsement made a big difference for Bibi,” the president added, referring to his public backing of Netanyahu during the closing stretch of the campaign.

Asked whether he might become involved in efforts to establish a Netanyahu-led unity government, Trump said he had not previously considered the possibility but did not rule it out.

“I will take a look,” he replied.

The remarks raised the prospect of American involvement in Israel’s coalition negotiations, although an American official subsequently told the Times of Israel that the Trump administration had made no decision to intervene.

The official described reports identifying specific coalition arrangements supposedly favored by Washington as “false and premature,” stressing that election results were still coming in and that it was too early to determine whether the administration would become involved.

Separately, an American official told i24NEWS that Trump might wait several weeks before attempting to bring Netanyahu and opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot together, potentially inviting both men to his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida.

“I suspect he won’t jump right in at the start,” the official said. “He’ll wait a bit, see which way the wind is blowing, and then—after a few weeks—he might pick up the phone to Eisenkot and Netanyahu and say, ‘Guys, come on down to Mar-a-Lago,’ to close a deal.”

According to the latest provisional figures released by Israel’s Central Elections Committee, Netanyahu’s governing coalition was projected to secure 53 seats in the 120-member Knesset, compared with 48 for Eisenkot’s opposition bloc and a historic 19 for the predominantly Arab parties.

Likud emerged as the largest party with 26 seats, followed by Eisenkot’s Yashar party with 21, as hundreds of thousands of special ballots, including votes cast by soldiers and diplomats, remained outstanding.

The results marked a significant reversal from major pre-election surveys as well as Tuesday night’s initial exit polls, which had shown Eisenkot’s opposition ahead of Netanyahu’s coalition.

Yet neither camp secured the 61 seats required to govern independently, setting the stage for potentially weeks of negotiations over Israel’s next government.

The Arab parties emerged as potential parliamentary power brokers after nearly doubling their representation, complicating efforts to assemble a governing majority.

The Joint List and Ra’am were projected to secure a combined 19 seats, up from 10 in the outgoing Knesset, amid a record surge in Arab voter participation. Overall turnout reached approximately 77.7 percent, its highest level in more than two decades.

Although Eisenkot’s opposition and the Arab parties together were projected to control 67 seats, most of the Jewish-led opposition parties have ruled out forming a government dependent on Arab factions, leaving that numerical majority without an agreed political path to power.

Joint List chairman Yousef Jabareen nevertheless signaled his party’s willingness to help remove Netanyahu, declaring that the faction was “ready and prepared to pave the way for the removal of Netanyahu’s government.”

The prospect of relying on the Joint List has drawn fierce opposition from Netanyahu, who has accused some of its lawmakers of supporting Palestinian terrorists and rejecting Israel’s Jewish character.

Netanyahu singled out former member of Knesset and Joint List member Osama Saadi over remarks concerning Palestinian prisoners, warning that a government dependent on such figures would endanger the country.

“These are the people with whom they want to form a dangerous government. We must not allow this to happen!” Netanyahu declared.

The opposition itself remains divided over cooperation with the Arab parties. While Eisenkot and several other leaders have rejected such an arrangement, Yair Golan, leader of the left-wing Democrats party, has advocated greater Jewish-Arab political cooperation.

Those divisions have renewed discussion of a national unity government bringing Netanyahu together with one or more of his political rivals, potentially offering an alternative to another election.

Eisenkot, whose Yashar party finished second, has repeatedly rejected serving under Netanyahu, including in an arrangement that would rotate the premiership between them.

Yet Channel 12 reported Wednesday that Avigdor Liberman, leader of the nationalist Yisrael Beytenu party, had largely broken off contact with his opposition partners and favored Eisenkot entering a unity government with Netanyahu.

Liberman himself has continued to reject serving under Netanyahu or supporting a government dependent on Arab parties, underscoring the competing pressures facing Eisenkot.

Political strategist Roni Rimon suggested that public refusals could soften as coalition negotiations progress.

“Things that might happen won’t happen on the first day, but perhaps on the last day,” he told Arutz Sheva.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who will begin consultations with parliamentary factions after receiving the official election results next week, addressed the political impasse Wednesday.

“We must do everything possible, certainly after yesterday, to avoid another round of elections,” Herzog said. “I expect everyone who comes here to come with an open mind.”

Following the election, Netanyahu called for the formation of a “strong right-wing government,” while Eisenkot has maintained his opposition to another Netanyahu-led administration.

Herzog’s consultations will determine which lawmaker receives the first opportunity to assemble a governing majority, a process that could extend for weeks and potentially lead to another election if negotiations fail.

The coalition impasse comes as Israel and the United States weigh possible renewed military operations against Iran, raising the stakes of a prolonged period without a newly formed Israeli government.

Netanyahu would remain caretaker prime minister throughout coalition negotiations, retaining authority over major national-security decisions, including potential military operations against Iran, subject to the required government and cabinet approvals.

In a separate report Wednesday, Axios said American and Israeli officials were preparing for the possibility of a renewed, large-scale military campaign against Iran after next week’s U.S. midterm elections if diplomatic efforts fail, while regional mediators worked to avert another round of fighting.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir spoke Monday with CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper to coordinate ahead of potential operations, according to the report.

Trump, meanwhile, confirmed that indirect negotiations with Tehran were underway but expressed uncertainty about whether they would succeed.

“We need to finish the job — either through a deal or another way — we will find out if negotiations can succeed,” the president said.

A senior diplomatic official separately told Israel Hayom that decisions concerning renewed military action against Iran would be driven by security considerations rather than the timetable for forming Israel’s next government.

For now, the Trump administration has made no decision to intervene in Israel’s coalition negotiations, leaving Netanyahu and his political rivals to navigate the parliamentary deadlock as Herzog prepares to begin the formal process of determining who will form the country’s next government.