Editing Elections in Israel (section)

==History==
The electoral threshold for a party to be allocated a Knesset seat was only 1% until 1988; it was then raised to 1.5% and remained at that level until 2003, when it was again raised to 2%. On 11 March 2014, the Knesset approved a new law to raise the threshold to 3.25% (approximately 4 seats).<ref>[http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/178361#.UyDRtvm1ZcQ Liberman Mocks Opposition 'Crybabies' as Governance Law Passes] Israel National News, 11 March 2014</ref>

In 1992, in an attempt to produce more stable governments, Israel adopted a system of direct election of the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister was directly elected separately from the Knesset in 1996, 1999 and 2001. The direct election of the Prime Minister was abandoned after the 2001 election, having failed to produce more stable governments.