Israel

[Thomas216]

It's interesting that the writer takes it as a given that the government isn't representative of the people and that the majority are to the right of the government.

Of course, if there is a majority for an agreement, the same majority could simply get rid of this law first to avoid a referendum.

You don't even need a majority, a plurality will do. 20 MK can abolish the law tomorrow if they want to. the truth is that this law has a symbolic meaning and not much more, any PM who'll want to to retreat from any part of the state of Israel will just abolish the law in a simple vote, no need for an absolute majority.

[Thomas216]

The current government could and pretty much any Likud government could because of the Left (left's? lefts?) automatic support for such a move. We can't tell what the situation will be like years from now when the need for it will arise but most chances are that there will be no referendum if the government reach an agreement. You should also remember how forgiving the Israeli electorate is, just look at Netanyahu, Barak, Sharon, Rabin and many others. It's safe to say the government will not suffer much by avoiding a referendum.

[Thomas216]

One should note that Netanyahu is a notoriously bad campaigner. Both in 2006 and 2009 it almost looked as if he doesn't want to win. In 2009 Likud reached heights of about 35 mandates before collapsing And eventually finishing second behind Kadima.

Regarding Labour, their rationale is clear- if they want to become the largest left-wing party they must differentiate themselves from Kadima. That means if Kadima's in the coalition they are not and the other way around. It obviously doesn't work but that is the general idea.