69 terms.
A
- Alternate prime minister
- A post created by a 2020 amendment to Basic Law: The Government for rotation governments. The 2020 law set up the Alternate Prime Minister's Office, to be held by Benny Gantz for 18 months and then passed to Netanyahu, so that the outgoing prime minister could keep the title after vacating the post. The Supreme Court declined to strike the law down. (Times of Israel, July 12, 2021) See Forming a government.
- Annexation
- Applying Israeli law and administration to West Bank land. The Knesset has not passed it into law. On Oct 22, 2025, a bill applying Israeli law to "all areas of settlement" passed a preliminary reading 25–24 and was sent to the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. Supporters call it applying sovereignty; this site says annexation. (Jerusalem Post, October 22, 2025) See The West Bank and annexation, Settlers, Who votes, and who doesn't.
- Area C
- The roughly 60% of the West Bank under full Israeli control under the 1995 Oslo II agreement. In Area A (about 18%) the Palestinian Authority has full control; in Area B (about 22%) the Authority has civil control and Israel security control. (B'Tselem) See The West Bank and annexation, Settlers, Who votes, and who doesn't.
- Areas A and B
- The two other zones of the 1995 Oslo II division of the West Bank (see Area C). The accords required Israel to transfer certain powers in Areas A and B to Palestinian authorities; the International Court of Justice found in 2024 that the transfers "have remained limited and partial" and that Israel "has retained significant control in relation to security matters." (International Court of Justice, advisory opinion (UN doc. A/78/968), July 19, 2024) See The West Bank and annexation, Who votes, and who doesn't.
- Ashkenaziאשכנזיash-ke-nah-ZEE
- Jews whose families trace their roots mainly to central and eastern Europe; plural Ashkenazim. Pew found that "fully two-thirds of Ashkenazim identify as secular (Hiloni) Jews," compared with 32% of Sephardim and Mizrahim. (Pew Research Center, March 8, 2016) See Secular Israel, Masorti Israel.
- Attorney general
- Israel's attorney general heads the criminal prosecution, represents the state and the public interest in court, and gives legal counsel to the government "as the authorized interpreter of the law." Proposals to split the role have been debated for years. The government tried to remove the incumbent attorney general, but Supreme Court rulings halted the dismissal proceedings. (Israel Democracy Institute, April 15, 2026) See Courts and the judicial overhaul.
B
- Bader–Ofer method
- Israel's rule for sharing out leftover seats, adopted with the Bader–Ofer Law of 1973, one of whose goals was "to strengthen the larger parties." After whole seats are handed out, each leftover seat goes to the list with the most votes per seat it would then hold, one seat at a time. (Israel Democracy Institute, October 30, 2022) See From votes to seats.
- Ballot letters
- Each list runs under a short code of Hebrew letters printed on its ballot slip, and the Central Elections Committee reports the count by those letters, not by party name. In 2022 the Likud column in the committee's results file was headed מחל. (Central Elections Committee, November 8, 2022) See How Israelis vote, Results.
- Ballot slip
- Israelis vote on paper. Behind a screen, the voter takes one printed slip for the chosen list, seals it in an envelope and drops the envelope in the ballot box. A slip with writing on it, a torn slip, or an envelope holding more than one slip is disqualified. (Ynet, October 31, 2022) See How Israelis vote.
- Basic Laws
- Israel has no single written constitution. The assembly elected to write one turned itself into the Knesset and chose instead "an incremental constitution, made up of a series of 'basic laws' to be legislated over the years." Basic Law: The Knesset and Basic Law: The Government set the rules for elections and for forming governments. (Israel Democracy Institute, February 14, 2023) See Courts and the judicial overhaul, Forming a government.
- Bedouin
- The State Comptroller counted around 325,000 Bedouin in the Negev at the end of 2023, about 20% of the region's population. It estimates the "dispersed Bedouin population," which includes the unrecognized villages, at 70,000 to 90,000. (Jerusalem Post (State Comptroller report), April 28, 2026) See Palestinian citizens of Israel.
- Bibi
- Benjamin Netanyahu's nickname since childhood. In July 2019 he passed David Ben-Gurion as Israel's longest-serving prime minister, at 4,876 days; he was first in office from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2009. (Times of Israel, July 20, 2019) See Party Map.
- The bloc
- Parties backing Benjamin Netanyahu for prime minister. In 2022, the blocs' vote totals were "almost identical," but his camp won "a clear majority of 64 seats." This site groups lists as the Netanyahu bloc, the Anti-Netanyahu bloc (Zionist parties), lists between the blocs, and the Joint List and Ra'am. These polling groups do not imply a coalition agreement. (Israel Democracy Institute, November 8, 2022) See Party Map, Polls, Results.
C
- Central Elections Committee
- The body that runs Knesset elections. It is headed by a Supreme Court justice chosen by the court's justices, currently Deputy President Noam Sohlberg, and its plenum, 31 members for the outgoing Knesset, is made up of representatives of the Knesset's factions. It can disqualify a list or candidate on grounds set in law, including incitement to racism. (Israel Democracy Institute, July 23, 2026) See How Israelis vote, Results.
- Chief Rabbinateהרבנות הראשיתha-rah-bah-NOOT ha-rah-SHEET
- The state religious authority for Jews, led by two chief rabbis, one Ashkenazi and one Sephardi, elected for 10-year terms by a body of 150. It oversees kashrut certification, marriage, divorce and more, and the chief rabbis alternate at the head of the Chief Rabbinate Council and the Supreme Rabbinical Court. (Jerusalem Post, May 19, 2024) See Religion and state.
- Coalition
- The parties that together hold the government. No single party has ever won a majority of Knesset seats, so every Israeli government has been a coalition, of between three and nine factions. Governments formed after elections have almost always had the support of at least 61 members. (Israel Democracy Institute, April 15, 2026) See Forming a government.
- Coalition agreement
- The signed deal between the factions forming a government, specifying which ministries each faction will head and the guiding principles and policies the government will promote. (Israel Democracy Institute, April 29, 2026) See Forming a government.
- Constructive no-confidence
- Israel's rule for toppling a sitting government: a no-confidence motion passes only if 61 Knesset members support an alternative government, naming its prime minister, other ministers and basic guidelines. IDI calls the mechanism "among the most rigid in the world." (Israel Democracy Institute, April 6, 2022) See Forming a government.
- Consultations
- After the election, the president holds consultations with the representatives of the factions elected to the Knesset, then nominates one of their leaders to form a government. The nominee has 28 days to do so, which can be extended by 14. (Israel Democracy Institute, April 15, 2026) See Forming a government.
D
- Dati leumiדתי לאומיdah-TEE leh-oo-MEE
- National-religious Jews, also called Religious Zionists: Orthodox in practice and fully part of the Zionist state, including army service. In the Central Bureau of Statistics' 2026 survey, 12.4% of Jewish adults called themselves "religious" (dati), the official category closest to this group. Not the same as the party Religious Zionism. (Ynet (Central Bureau of Statistics), September 3, 2026) See Religious Zionists.
- Development towns
- In the words of the Times of Israel, "around 30 development towns created in the 1950s and 1960s mainly in the north and south of Israel, primarily to house immigrants from North Africa." Sderot, Netivot, Ofakim, Dimona, Beit She'an and Kiryat Shmona are among them. (Times of Israel, April 30, 2019) See Masorti Israel, Vote map.
- Dissolution
- The Knesset can end its term early by passing a dissolution law, which needs at least 61 votes on the third reading. It is also dissolved automatically if the state budget is not passed on time (in normal years, by March 31). Either way, a new election follows. (Israel Democracy Institute, May 12, 2026) See Forming a government.
- Double-envelope votes
- Ballots cast anywhere other than the voter's assigned polling station, officially in "outer envelopes." Most come from members of the security forces stationed far from home; others from hospital patients and staff, prisoners and detainees, diplomats posted abroad, residents of senior-citizen facilities and persons with disabilities. (Israel Democracy Institute, November 2, 2022) See How Israelis vote, Results.
- Druze
- A religious community whose tradition, in Pew's words, "incorporates elements of Islam, Hinduism and even classical Greek philosophy." In Israel they are about 2% of the population, concentrated in the north. Unlike most Muslim and Christian citizens, Druze men serve in the army: about six in ten told Pew they had served (45%) or were serving (15%). (Pew Research Center, March 21, 2016) See Druze.
E
- East Jerusalem
- The part of Jerusalem Israel captured in 1967, to which it applied its law, jurisdiction and administration; a 1980 Basic Law proclaimed "complete and united Jerusalem" its capital. The UN Security Council and the International Court of Justice treat it as occupied territory. Israel, the court noted, "regards Palestinians residing there as foreigners" and requires residence permits. (International Court of Justice, advisory opinion (UN doc. A/78/968), July 19, 2024) See Who votes, and who doesn't, The West Bank and annexation.
- Electoral threshold
- A list needs at least 3.25% of the valid votes to win any seats, the rule since the 2015 election. In 2022 that meant 154,855 votes. Votes for lists that fall short are dropped before seats are handed out. (Israel Democracy Institute, March 16, 2026) See From votes to seats, Polls.
- Exit poll
- The estimates broadcast by Israel's three main television channels, Kan, Channel 12 and Channel 13, the moment polls close at 10:00 p.m. They are projections of seats per list, not a count, and can differ from the final result. (Ynet, November 1, 2022) See How Israelis vote, Results.
G
- Gaza disengagement
- Israel's 2005 withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, in which more than 8,000 Israelis were removed from 21 settlements, including the Gush Katif communities. The territory was handed over to the Palestinian Authority before Hamas seized it in 2007. (Ynet, August 2, 2025) See The war and the hostages, Settlers.
- Green Line
- The 1949 ceasefire line separating Israel and the West Bank, the boundary in place before the 1967 war. In 2022 Tel Aviv began marking it on its classroom maps, against Education Ministry practice. (Times of Israel, August 25, 2022) See The West Bank and annexation, Vote map.
H
- Hamas
- Islamist Palestinian movement, rival of Fatah, Mahmoud Abbas's party. It won the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections, took control of Gaza "in a violent coup against Fatah in 2007" and has ruled it since. The Times of Israel calls it a terror group. It led the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel (see the timeline). (Times of Israel, April 25, 2026) See The war and the hostages, Who votes, and who doesn't, Timeline.
- Haredi draft
- The fight over conscripting Haredi men, who for most of the state's history could defer service while studying full-time in yeshiva. In June 2024 a unanimous nine-justice Supreme Court panel found "no legal basis for avoiding the recruitment of yeshiva students." Israeli debate calls men who do not report "draft evaders"; this site says yeshiva students who did not report. (Times of Israel, June 25, 2024) See The Haredi draft, Haredim.
- Haredimחרדיםhah-ray-DEEM
- Israel's most strictly religious Jews (singular Haredi), often called ultra-Orthodox in English. In Central Bureau of Statistics figures for 2025, released in September 2026, 11.5% of Jewish adults called themselves Haredi. (Ynet (Central Bureau of Statistics), September 3, 2026) See Haredim, The Haredi draft.
- Hezbollah
- A Shiite Muslim political party and militant group based in Lebanon, backed by Iran, with seats in Lebanon's parliament since 1992. After the Hamas-led attack of October 2023 it began firing rockets, mortars and drones across the border. An Israeli campaign in 2024 considerably weakened it, and the two sides agreed to a U.S.-brokered ceasefire in November 2024. (Council on Foreign Relations, April 17, 2026) See The war and the hostages.
- High Court of Justice
- The name for Israel's Supreme Court when it hears petitions against government action. The court serves as both a superior court of appeals and a first-instance administrative court, so citizens and groups can challenge the government directly before it. English coverage often says "the High Court"; this site says Supreme Court. (Israel Democracy Institute, February 14, 2023) See Courts and the judicial overhaul.
- Hiloniחילוניhee-lo-NEE
- A secular Jew; plural hilonim. In the Central Bureau of Statistics' newest count, 39.6% of Jews aged 20 and over called themselves secular, the largest single group but not a majority. The rest: 21.8% traditional, not so religious; 14.0% traditional-religious; 12.4% religious; 11.5% Haredi. (VIN News (Central Bureau of Statistics), September 9, 2026) See Secular Israel.
I
- Intifada
- The name for the Palestinian uprisings against Israeli occupation. The first began in December 1987 and ran until the 1993 Oslo Accords; by Al Jazeera's count "more than 100 Israelis were killed by Palestinians" and "at least 1,000 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces." The second began in September 2000 (see the timeline). (Al Jazeera, December 8, 2023) See Timeline, The West Bank and annexation, Who votes, and who doesn't.
- Iron Dome
- Israel's mobile system for intercepting short-range rockets and artillery, at ranges of up to 70 km. Development began in 2007 and the first units were deployed in 2011. From fiscal 2011 to 2015 the United States provided "almost $1.3B" for its batteries, interceptors, co-production and maintenance. (CSIS Missile Defense Project, July 13, 2021) See The war and the hostages.
J
- Judea and Samariaיהודה ושומרוןyeh-hoo-DAH veh-shom-ROHN
- The biblical name for the West Bank: Judea is the southern part, Samaria the northern. It is the main name in internal Israeli discourse, while the territory is known internationally as the West Bank. In 2018 the US ambassador, David Friedman, sought to use it in official statements. This site says West Bank. (Times of Israel, April 25, 2018) See The West Bank and annexation.
- Judicial overhaul
- The plan Justice Minister Yariv Levin announced in January 2023 to bar courts from using a "reasonableness" test on government decisions, give the government a built-in majority on the committee that picks judges, curb judicial review of laws, let 61 Knesset members re-enact a law the court struck down, and let ministers appoint their own legal advisers. (Times of Israel, January 4, 2023) See Courts and the judicial overhaul.
- Judicial Selection Committee
- The nine-member panel that appoints judges, with political representatives of the coalition and opposition, three Supreme Court justices and two Israel Bar Association representatives. A law passed on March 27, 2025, which takes effect only in the next Knesset, replaces the bar's seats with lawyers chosen by the coalition and opposition and removes the judges' influence over Supreme Court picks. (Times of Israel, March 27, 2025) See Courts and the judicial overhaul.
K
- KnessetכנסתKNEH-set
- Israel's parliament, made up of 120 members (MKs), with no second chamber. Elections are due every four years, but from 1996 to 2022 they came on average every 2.4 years. (Israel Democracy Institute, April 29, 2026) See From votes to seats, Forming a government.
L
- Law of Return
- The 1950 law, amended in 1970, that grants citizenship to anyone with at least one Jewish grandparent. The Chief Rabbinate recognizes as Jews only those with a Jewish mother or an Orthodox conversion it approves, so many immigrants admitted under the law are not Jewish in the Rabbinate's eyes and cannot marry in a state-sanctioned wedding. (Times of Israel, January 4, 2019) See Russian-speaking Israelis, Religion and state.
- Left and right
- In Israel, left and right are defined mostly by positions on the Palestinians, the occupied territories and a Palestinian state. Economic views are a separate, weaker dimension: an expert survey of party positions places Shas and United Torah Judaism on the right on the Palestinian question and on the left on economics. (Zur and Bakker, Party Politics (CHES-Israel 2021–22)) See The American lens, Party Map.
- List
- What Israelis vote for: a party or alliance's ranked slate of candidates. Voters cannot change the order, and the ballot itself does not even carry candidates' names, except sometimes the list leader's. A list's seats go to the names at the top of its slate, in order. (Israel Democracy Institute, April 29, 2026) See From votes to seats, Party Map.
M
- Mandateמנדטman-DAHT
- The task of forming a government, which the president gives to one Knesset member after the election. The law sets no rule for choosing. The president typically picks the leader of the largest party, "but this is by no means mandatory"; what counts is who seems best placed to win the Knesset's confidence. (Israel Democracy Institute, April 15, 2026) See Forming a government.
- Mandate (seat)מנדטman-DAHT
- In Israeli polls and election coverage, a "mandate" often simply means a Knesset seat, as in a party "expected to come second with 19 mandates." (Al Jazeera, January 22, 2013) See Polls, Results.
- Masortiמסורתיmah-sor-TEE
- Traditional Jews, plural masortim, who sit between secular and religious on the scale Israeli surveys use. The Central Bureau of Statistics splits them into those "traditional but not particularly religious" (21.8% of Jews aged 20 and over) and "traditional-religious" (14%). Not the same as Mizrahi. (VIN News (Central Bureau of Statistics), September 9, 2026) See Masorti Israel.
- Military rule
- Israel's rule over Palestinians in the West Bank through its army since 1967. The International Court of Justice found in 2024 that Israel "has to a large degree substituted its military law for the local law": Palestinians are tried in military courts, settlers in Israeli civilian courts. Since late 2022 a civilian minister in the Defense Ministry decides civil affairs in Area C. (International Court of Justice, advisory opinion (UN doc. A/78/968), July 19, 2024) See Who votes, and who doesn't, The West Bank and annexation.
- Mizrahiמזרחיmiz-rah-HEE
- Jews whose families came from the Middle East and North Africa; plural Mizrahim. In IDI's May 2025 survey, 35.2% of Jewish adults described themselves as Mizrahi, 39.8% Ashkenazi and 15.3% mixed. Not the same as masorti, which describes religious practice rather than origin. (Israel Democracy Institute, Democracy Index 2025, May 2025) See Masorti Israel.
N
- Nakba
- "Catastrophe": Palestinians' name for their mass displacement in 1947–49. By the first half of 1949, "at least 750,000 Palestinians in total were forcibly expelled or fled outside of their homeland," Al Jazeera reports. Palestinians mark it every year on May 15. (Al Jazeera, May 23, 2017) See A Palestinian state and the 2026 vote, Who votes, and who doesn't, Timeline.
- Nation-State Law
- Basic Law: Israel – The Nation State of the Jewish People, passed 62–55 in July 2018. In the Times of Israel's translation it declares that "the right to exercise national self-determination in the State of Israel is unique to the Jewish people" and that "the Arabic language has a special status in the state." (Times of Israel, July 18, 2018) See Palestinian citizens of Israel, Druze.
O
- Occupied
- This site's word for the West Bank and the parts of Gaza Israel holds. The International Court of Justice's non-binding 2024 advisory opinion refers to "the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967." Netanyahu answered: "The Jewish people are not occupiers in their own land." (Times of Israel, July 19, 2024) See The West Bank and annexation, Who votes, and who doesn't.
- Opposition
- The parties in the Knesset that are not part of the government. It is led by the Leader of the Opposition, usually from the largest opposition faction, a post with special powers and status. (Israel Democracy Institute, April 29, 2026) See Forming a government, Party Map.
- Oslo Accords
- The agreements between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization signed on September 13, 1993, by Yitzhak Rabin and Yasser Arafat, which created the Palestinian Authority. They set a five-year interim period of Palestinian self-government and postponed issues such as Jerusalem and refugees. Oslo II, in 1995, divided the West Bank into Areas A, B and C. (Ynet, February 7, 2009) See The West Bank and annexation, A Palestinian state and the 2026 vote, Who votes, and who doesn't.
- Outpost
- A West Bank settlement without official status. Peace Now defines outposts as "settlements established by governments of Israel since the 1990s in an unofficial and illegal manner." (Peace Now, June 1, 2009) See The West Bank and annexation, Settlers.
- Outside support
- Backing a government in Knesset votes without joining its cabinet or holding ministries. After Shas left Rabin's coalition in September 1993, its 56 MKs relied on outside support from Arab factions. Ra'am joined the Bennett–Lapid coalition in 2021. The Builder separates cabinet membership, hypothetical outside support and abstention; these choices do not imply an agreement. (Israel Democracy Institute, the 1992 elections, October 5, 2026) See Forming a government, Timeline, /coalition-builder.
P
- Palestinian citizens of Israel
- This site's term for Arab Muslims, among them the Negev Bedouin, and Arab Christians who hold Israeli citizenship. IDI and other sources say "Arab citizens of Israel" or "Arabs." IDI counted 1,595,300 Arab citizens outside East Jerusalem at the end of 2020, 17.2% of the population, a figure that includes Druze. (Israel Democracy Institute, March 17, 2022) See Palestinian citizens of Israel, Druze, Who votes, and who doesn't.
- President
- Israel's head of state, elected by the Knesset for a seven-year term by an absolute majority (61 members) in a secret ballot. The role is mostly ceremonial, but the president gives the task of forming a government to a Knesset member after an election, signs laws, and grants pardons. (Israel Democracy Institute, March 25, 2014) See Forming a government.
R
- Reasonableness standard
- A doctrine under which courts could void government and ministerial decisions they found unreasonable. The Knesset curbed it in July 2023, the second overhaul-era law to pass after a March 2023 change limiting when a prime minister can be removed as incapacitated. On January 1, 2024, a full 15-justice Supreme Court panel struck that law down 8–7. (Times of Israel, January 1, 2024) See Courts and the judicial overhaul.
- Religious Zionism (party)
- A party led by Bezalel Smotrich. For 2026, Smotrich and Zehut leader Moshe Feiglin agreed to run together in a "technical bloc," which they said was meant "to prevent loss of votes." The party is distinct from the national-religious movement (dati leumi) whose name it shares. (Ynet) See Party Map, Religious Zionists.
- Rotation government
- A government with two heads, a prime minister and an alternate, who switch posts on a date set in advance. The form was created in 2020 for the Netanyahu–Gantz government, whose ministers were split into two blocs, one tied to each leader, each head holding a veto over important decisions by the other. (Israel Democracy Institute, May 4, 2020) See Forming a government.
S
- Settlement
- In Peace Now's definition, one of the Jewish communities "that Israel established after 1967 beyond the Green Line on land occupied in the Six-Day War." Some 30% of settlers are Haredi and live in cities built for them, such as Modi'in Illit and Beitar Illit. (Peace Now, June 1, 2009) See Settlers, The West Bank and annexation.
- Sovereignty
- The word supporters of annexation use: "applying sovereignty" means extending Israeli law to West Bank land. When the cabinet expanded Israeli control over West Bank land in February 2026, Bezalel Smotrich called it part of "the normalization and de facto sovereignty revolution that we are leading"; the Foreign Ministry called it "an administrative measure." This site says annexation. (Times of Israel, February 19, 2026) See The West Bank and annexation.
- Status quo
- The arrangement on religion and state that goes back to David Ben-Gurion's 1947 letter to the Haredi party Agudat Yisrael, which promised that the new state would take Jewish religious concerns into account on Shabbat, kashrut and matrimonial law. The letter had no legal force, but "the status quo" is still the name for the arrangements that followed. (Israel Democracy Institute, March 2, 2017) See Religion and state.
- Surplus-vote agreement
- A pre-election pact between two lists, also called a vote-sharing agreement. When leftover seats are handed out, the pair are treated as a single list, which raises their chance of an extra seat. Only two lists can sign together, and the agreement counts only if both pass the threshold. (Israel Democracy Institute, October 30, 2022) See From votes to seats, Results.
T
- Torato Umanuto
- Hebrew for "his Torah is his trade": the arrangement, set up after the state was founded, under which yeshiva students could claim that "Torah [study] is my occupation" and receive a deferral of military service. The deferrals expired on June 30, 2023. (Israel Democracy Institute, January 21, 2026) See The Haredi draft.
- Transitional government
- The common name, not found in legislation, for an outgoing government that keeps serving until a new government is formed. The law sets no limit on its powers, to avoid a "governance vacuum," but transitional governments have a narrower "scope of reasonableness" and must act with restraint. (Israel Democracy Institute, May 12, 2026) See Forming a government.
W
- West Bank
- The territory west of the Jordan River that Israel captured in the 1967 war and has held under military occupation since (see Occupied). This site's name for it; internal Israeli discourse refers to it primarily by its biblical name, Judea and Samaria. (Times of Israel, April 25, 2018) See The West Bank and annexation, Settlers, Vote map, Who votes, and who doesn't.