He outdid David Ben-Gurion, the nation’s first premier, who held the title for 2,790 straight days.
Netanyahu was also prime minister from 1996 to 1999, but the counting for continuous days only began when he took office again in 2009 and was reelected in 2013 and 2015. Ben-Gurion still holds the record for total time as prime minister, and Netanyahu would need to serve another 970 days to break it.
With the next ballot in Israel scheduled for November 2019, Netanyahu could surpass Ben-Gurion if early elections are not called. That, however, is an unlikely scenario as the current coalition has a shaky parliamentary majority, and most Israeli governments never complete their four-year terms.
Compared to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Netanyahu’s reign is not that impressive. Merkel, who was first elected in 2005, has now spent more than 4,000 days in office and counting.
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