CNN - Pivotal Elections: Israel

There are 20 parties, including more than 10 new ones, vying for power in Israel's 1996 elections. The largest of these are Labor, Likud and Meretz.

In Israel smaller parties often play the role of kingmaker due to election laws giving a party a seat in the national assembly with as little as 1.5 percent of the vote. Parties that could not attain representation in another democracy can be critical in delivering a majority to the larger parties in Israel.

These smaller parties include ultra-Orthodox religious alliances, breakaway groups from larger parties, special interest groups and the Israeli-Arab parties that are expected to play a crucial role in this year's elections.

Labor

Led by Prime Minister Shimon Peres, the Labor Party is Israel's largest left-wing party. Labor, which controls more than a third of the 120 seats in the Knesset, was founded in 1968 as a merger of three labor groups. Former Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin headed the party until his assassination in November 1995. Labor has forged peace agreements with Palestinians living in Israel and with neighboring Arab states previously hostile to the Jewish state.

Likud

The largest conservative party in Israel, Likud won more than a fourth of the seats in Israel's 120-member national assembly, known as the Knesset, in 1992. Under the leadership of Benjamin Netanyahu, Likud has formed an election coalition with the Tsomet and Gesher parties.

Likud objects to Labor's handling of peace negotiations with the Palestinians and neighboring Arab states, supporting instead a more cautious approach to guarantee security of the Jewish state.

Meretz

A coalition of three smaller parties, Meretz was the third largest vote-getter in 1992, winning 12 of the 120 seats in the Knesset.

Ideologically to the left of Labor, Meretz was the first party to favor dividing Israel and Palestinian-controlled areas into two distinct nations. The party also favors an end to Jewish settlements in the occupied territories. Meretz, which is led by Yossi Sarid, is expected to form a coalition with Labor after the elections.

Religious Parties

MAFDAL (National Religious Party)

MAFDAL is a Jewish party led by Zevulun Hammer. It is moderate as religious parties go in Israel, meaning that it recognizes the government as the secular authority and its members serve in the military.

Shas

Shas, or the "Sephardic Torah Guardians," was the fifth largest of Israel's political parties after the 1992 elections, winning six seats in the Knesset. Its ultra-Orthodox members believe God is the supreme authority over any government. The party is led by Arieh Deri.

Arab Parties

Hadash

A socialist party, also known as the Democratic Front for Peace and Equality, is led by Hashem Mahameed. Historically, the party has favored peace among Jews and Arabs, the withdrawal of Israel from Arab territories, and establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

The United Arab List

This coalition party was formed this year from the Mada-Democratic Arab Party, Israel's Islamic Movement and The Arab Islamic List. The party includes a number of religious Muslims and is led by Abd Malek Dahamsha, a former political prisoner.

Other Parties

Moledet

This nationalist right-wing party is led by Rehavam Ze'evi. Its predecessor was the Kach Party formed by Rabbi Meir Kahane, who was assassinated in New York. In 1992 Moledet, which is regarded as less extreme than Kach, won three seats in the Knesset.

Yisrael Ba'Aliyah

Russian dissident Nathan Sharansky leads this Russian immigrant party.

The Third Way

A spin-off from the Labor Party, this group is led by Avigdor Kahalani. Largely made up of disaffected Labor Party members, The Third Way aims to combine Likud and Labor party ideology. The party favors peace with Arabs but wants total separation of Israelis and Palestinians.