Factional and Government Make-Up of the Eighth Knesset

The Knesset History

The Main Events and Issues During the Eighth Knesset

PM Yitzhak Rabin with Minister of Defense Shimon Peres and Foreign Minister, Yigal Allon, 3.6.1974.

The Entebbe Operation: The kidnapped "Air-France" passengers returning home, 4.7.1976.

The terrorist attack at Ma'alot: A soldier carrying a girl out of the inferno, 15.5.1974.

The 8th Knesset: Minister of Labor, Moshe Baram.

Elon Moreh: MKs Menachem Begin, Zvulun Hammer and Yehuda Ben Meir with settlers, 26.7.1974.

Select a Knesset:

Factional and Government Make-Up of the Eighth Knesset

Elected on 31 December, 1973.
Speaker: Israel Yeshayahu-Shar'abi;
Deputy Speakers: Shne'or Zalman Abramov, Mordechai Ben-Porath, Mordechai Darnizky
(Yudin), Avraham Gilberber, Ben-Zion Keshet, Yitzhak Peretz,
Pinhas Scheinman, Moshe Shahal.
Secretary General: Netan'el Lorch.

Name of List Votes in Percentage Number of Seats Number of Seats Before Next Elections

Alignment ¹ 39.6 51 49

Likud ² 30.2 39 40

National Religious Party 8.3 10 10

United Torah Front ³ 3.8 5 0

Independent Liberals ² 3.6 4 3

Rakah ⁴ 3.4 4 4

Civil Rights Movement (Ratz) 2.2 3 2

Kidma Vepituah ⁵ 1.4 2 0

Moked 1.4 1 1

Arab List for Bedouins and Villagers ⁵ 1.0 1 0

United Arab List - 0 3

Social-Democratic Faction - 0 2

Agudat Yisrael - 0 3

Po'alei Agudat Yisrael - 0 2

Single MK - Mordechai Ben-Porat - 0 1

¹ One member left the Alignment and joined the Social-Democratic Faction; MK Mordechai Ben-Porat left the Alignment and remained a single MK.
² One member moved from the Independent Liberals to the Likud.
³ Split into Agudat Yisrael and Po'alei Agudat Yisrael.
⁴ Changed its name to "Hadash".
⁵ Arab minorities lists associated with the Alignment. During the Knesset, they both joined the Alignment, and then split from it, forming a joint party called the United Arab List.

The sixteenth government was formed by Golda Meir, on 10 March, 1974.
The coalition members were: the Alignment, the National Religious Party and the Independent Liberals. The number of ministers when the government was formed - 22. The Prime Minister resigned on 11 April, following the publication of the interim report of the Agranat Commission, which investigated the background to the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War.

The seventeenth government was formed by Yitzhak Rabin, on 3 June, 1974. The coalition members were: the Alignment, Ratz, the Independent Liberals and minority lists. The National Religious Party joined the government on 30 October, and Ratz left on 6 November, 1974. The number of ministers when the government was formed - 19, and after the NRP joined and Ratz left - 21. The Government resigned on 22 December, 1976, against the background of the abstention of the NRP in a vote on a motion of no-confidence, and the removal of its ministers from the government. The motion had been brought by Agudat Yisrael in connection with the apparent breach of the Sabbath caused by a ceremony held at an air force base.