Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday he intends to try to form a government in the next two to three weeks, which would give him a fourth term as prime minister, after his conservative Likud party won Israel’s parliamentary election.

With nearly all of the ballots counted, Likud captured 30 seats to beat out the 24 seats for its main challenger, the Zionist Union.

A statement from Netanyahu’s office said he has already reached out to smaller parties in order to form the 61-seat coalition he needs to govern. One key will be the centrist Kulanu party, which won 10 seats in Tuesday’s vote.

“The citizens of Israel expect us to quickly put together a leadership that will work for them regarding security, economy and society as we committed to do, and we will do so,” Netanyahu said.

Herzog concedes defeat

Zionist Union leader Isaac Herzog conceded defeat in the election and said he congratulated Netanyahu in a phone call. Herzog also told reporters his party will continue working for the Israeli people as a member of the opposition.

Meanwhile, Senior Palestinian Authority official Abdullah Abdullah expressed disappointment at the result.

“Unfortunately it looks that the Likud will form the next government, and that means the old policy will continue,” Abdullah said. “Netanyahu was very clear in his last days of the campaign that he will never allow a Palestinian state, he will not withdraw one centimeter from the occupied Palestinian territories, Jerusalem will stay united as the capital of Israel and that means it closes all the options for peace negotiations.”

The prime minister said this week he would never support a Palestinian state earlier this week, reversing the position he had held during his administration as the two sides conducted peace talks that eventually broke down.
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