House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Wednesday expressed approval for Israel’s reelection of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The people of Israel have spoken,” Pelosi said at a press conference. “I respect the results that they have produced.”
{mosads}Pelosi added Netanyahu’s victory would foster a “lively” atmosphere for the Middle East negotiations between Israel and Palestine.
“I think that what they have produced will be a continued lively discussion about the peace process,” Pelosi said Wednesday of Israeli voters’ decision.
Netanyahu won a resounding victory Wednesday after Tuesday’s election results came in. His third term as prime minister comes after vowing Monday night he would not allow a Palestinian state if reelected.
Voters on Tuesday gave Netanyahu’s Likud Party 30 of a possible 120 seats in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament. That total was the largest number of seats earned in this election. The Zionist Union, Tuesday’s runner-up, took 24 seats with 99 percent of the votes counted.
Pelosi vowed Wednesday that the U.S. will support Netanyahu as he looks to build a coalition government in the coming weeks. The Israeli prime minister needs 67 seats for control of the Knesset.
“It doesn’t depend on personalities,” Pelosi said of U.S.-Israel relations. “It’s about values that we share. And we look forward to continuing our work together.”
Pelosi’s remarks offer a softer tone after Netanyahu’s controversial congressional address on March 3. The California Democrat said she was “near tears” after Netanyahu’s claims about Iran’s nuclear program during that speech.
President Obama’s administration officially remained neutral as Israeli votes were counted Tuesday night and into the next day. White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Wednesday that Obama would contact Netanyahu with congratulations “in the coming days.”