Isaac Herzog voted as new Israel president

According to the details, Knesset lawmakers voted for the 11th president in a secret ballot vote.

Herzog will be Israel’s 11th president— a largely ceremonial role, succeeding Reuven Rivlin, who is set to leave office next month after seven years in office.

Two candidates were running for the seven-year post; Isaac Herzog, a former Labour Party leader, and Miriam Peretz, an educator and social activist who lives in the northwest of occupied East Jerusalem.

Herzog defeated Miriam Peretz who was seen as a down-to-earth outsider close to the country’s dominant conservative and nationalist political camp.

Herzog comes from a prominent Zionist family and is a former head of Israel’s Labor Party and opposition leader who unsuccessfully ran against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the 2015 parliamentary elections.

His father was Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations before being elected president.

Israel's president has fewer powers in comparison with the prime minister where his power includes accepting credentials of new ambassadors, assigning lawmakers to form the government and issue amnesty to prisoners. The president also has the power to grant pardons — creating a potentially sensitive situation as Netanyahu stands trial for a series of corruption charges.

Netanyahu’s rivals faced a midnight deadline Wednesday to put together a new coalition government. If they fail, the country could be plunged into another election campaign.