Arab parties unite to keep Israeli seats

JERUSALEM — Facing an increased electoral threshold that threatens to bar small parties from the parliament, Israel’s Arab political factions announced Friday the formation of a single ticket for the March elections.

The move came after weeks of bitter negotiations among the parties and yields a list of somewhat strange bedfellows — Islamists, feminists, Palestinian nationalists and even a Jewish member of an Arab-dominated party with communist roots.

Arab politicians said they were responding to overwhelming public preference for a joint list, which the party leaders hope will increase voter turnout.

Arabs, known also as Palestinian citizens of Israel, make up 20 percent of the population, and their parties currently hold 11 of the parliament’s 120 seats.

Last March, Israel’s parliament raised the election threshold, meaning parties must draw at least 3.25 percent of the popular vote to attain seats in the Knesset. The new threshold — up from 2 percent — puts small parties in danger of exclusion.