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Knesset

Type	Unicameral
Houses	Not Applicable
Speaker of the Knesset	Dalia Itzik, Kadima, since May 4, 2006
Deputy Speaker	Majalli Wahabi, Kadima, since May 4, 2006
Members	120
Political groups (as of March 28, 2006 elections)	Kadima Labour-Meimad Shas Likud
Meeting place	Knesset, Jerusalem, Israel
Web site	http://www.knesset.gov.il/index.html

The Knesset (כנסת, Hebrew for "assembly") is the legislature of Israel. It is located in Jerusalem, the capital and seat of government of the State of Israel.

The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset enacts laws, elects the prime minister (although he is ceremonially appointed by the President), supervises the work of the government, reserves the power to remove the President of the State and the State Comptroller from office and to dissolve itself and call new elections.

The Knesset first convened on February 14, 1949. Every 4 years (or less if early elections are held, as is often the case), 120 members of the Knesset (MK) are elected by Israeli citizens who must be 18 years old to vote. The Government of Israel must be approved by a majority vote of the Knesset.

The Knesset has de jure parliamentary supremacy and can pass any laws by a simple majority, even those that conflict with the Basic Laws of Israel, as it is also a Constituent Assembly. Nonetheless, the Knesset's right to function effectively has been greatly curtailed due to the inherent flaws of the low threshold party list proportional representation that usually results in a fractious government dependent on unstable coalitions. Hence, de facto, the Supreme Court of Israel has greatly expanded its authority through judicial review to nearly every aspect of Knesset legislation at the expense of the Knesset's authority.

The Knesset is guarded by the Knesset Guard.

Contents 1 Latest election 2 Knesset location and building 3 The Knesset Assemblies 3.1 Composition of the Seventeenth Knesset (elected 2006) 4 See also 5 External links

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Main article: Israeli legislative election, 2006

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Summary of the 28 March 2006 Knesset of Israel election results

Parties	Votes	%	Seats	+/-
Kadima 1	690,901	22.02%	29	new
Labour-Meimad 2	472,366	15.06%	19	-2
Shas	299,054	9.53%	12	+1
Likud 3	281,996	8.989%	12	-15
Israel Beytenu 4	281,880	8.985%	11	+8
National Union - National Religious Party 5 National Union Moledet Tkuma Renewed Religious National Zionist party National Religious Party	224,083	7.14%	9	-1
Gil	185,759	5.92%	7	new
United Torah Judaism Agudat Israel Degel HaTorah	147,091	4.69%	6	+1
Meretz-Yachad	118,302	3.77%	5	-1
Ra'am-Ta'al	94,786	3.02%	4	+2
Hadash	86,092	2.74%	3	0
Balad	72,066	2.30%	3	0
Green Party	47,595	1.52%	0	0
Ale Yarok	40,353	1.29%	0	0
Jewish National Front	24,824	0.79%	0	0
Tafnit	18,753	0.60%	0	0
Hetz 6	10,113	0.33%	0	new
Shinui 7	4,675	0.16%	0	-15
Other parties	36,375	1.16%	0	0
Total	3,137,064	100%	120
Eligible voters: 5,014,622 Total votes cast: 3,186,739 (Turnout 63.6%) Spoiled ballots: 49,675 (1.56% of votes cast) Valid ballots: 3,137,064 Threshold (2%): 62,741 Votes per seat: 24,620
1 14 Knesset members joined Kadima in November 2005, 13 of them from Likud. 2 One Nation (3 Knesset members) merged with Labour (19 Knesset members) in 2004. 3 Israel Ba-Aliya (2 Knesset members) merged with Likud (38 Knesset members) in 2003, 13 MKs split and joined Kadima in 2005. 4 Israel Beytenu (3 Knesset members) split from the National Union (7 Knesset members) in 2003. 5 National Religious Party (6 Knesset members) joined the National Union (4 Knesset members after the split 4) prior to the election. 6 9 Knesset members split from Shinui and joined Hetz prior to the elections. 7 Only 2 Knesset members were left from the original faction after the split6 prior to the elections.

The current Knesset building is located on a hilltop in the west of Jerusalem; it was paid for by James A. de Rothschild as a gift to the State of Israel. Before the 1948 Arab-Israeli War there was an Arab settlement called Sheikh Badr on the site. The Knesset has had several locations:

1. February 14, 1949: First meeting of the Constituent Assembly, Jewish Agency building, Jerusalem.
2. March 8, 1949-December 14, 1949: Sittings held in the Kessem Cinema in Tel Aviv. (Migdal HaOpera situated there today).
3. December 26, 1949-March 8, 1950: Reconvenes in the Jewish Agency building, Jerusalem.
4. March 13, 1950: Temporary location at "Froumine Building", King George Street, Jerusalem.
5. 1957: James A. de Rothschild advises Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion that he will donate the funds for the permanent Knesset building.
6. October 14, 1958: Laying of the cornerstone for new Knesset building.
7. August 31, 1966: Dedication of the new building during the sixth Knesset.
8. 1981: New wing built, opened in 1992.
9. 2005: Additional wing presently being built.

The Knesset building is built on land leased from the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem.^{[citation needed]}

Each Knesset session is generally known by its election number. Thus the Knesset elected by Israel's first election in 1949 is known as the First Knesset. The current Knesset, elected in 2006 is the Seventeenth Knesset.

• First Knesset
• Second Knesset
• Third Knesset
• Fourth Knesset
• Fifth Knesset
• Sixth Knesset
• Seventh Knesset
• Eighth Knesset
• Ninth Knesset
• Tenth Knesset
• Eleventh Knesset
• Twelfth Knesset
• Thirteenth Knesset
• Fourteenth Knesset
• Fifteenth Knesset
• Sixteenth Knesset
• Seventeenth Knesset

• Kadima 29
• Labour 19
• Shas 12
• Likud 12
• Israel Beytenu 11
• National Union/National Religious Party* 9
• Gil 7
• United Torah Judaism** 6
• Meretz-Yachad 5
• United Arab List 4
• Hadash 3
• Balad 3

*The National Union and National Religious parties submitted a single list for this election, and may be considered as one party.

**In similar fashion, Agudat Israel and Degel HaTorah submitted a single list under the banner of United Torah Judaism.

Kadima, Labor, Shas, Gil and Yisrael Beiteinu, in bold, together form the governing coalition with 78 of the 120 seats. This government took office on October 30, 2006.

• List of Knesset members
• List of Knesset speakers
• List of political parties in Israel
• List of Israelis
• List of Likud Knesset Members
• List of insults to be banned from the Knesset
• Arab Knesset members
• List of Tzomet Knesset Members
• Prime Minister of Israel
• President of Israel
• Politics of Israel
• Basic Laws of Israel
• Law of Return
• Israeli Security Forces

• Official website
• Official website (English)
• Parliamentary Groups in the Knesset
• Minorities - Arab representatives in the Israeli Parliament
• Jerusalem Photo Archive - Knesset
• Arab Influence Promoted in Israeli legislature by Ynetnews

Israeli parliamentary elections v • d • e

1949 | 1951 | 1955 | 1959 | 1961 | 1965 | 1969 | 1973 | 1977 | 1981 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1996 | 1999 | 2003 | 2006

Israeli prime ministerial elections

1996 | 1999 | 2001

Coordinates: 31°46′36″N, 35°12′19″E