TEL AVIV (NYTIMES) - After the polls closed in the Israeli election last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to have suffered a humiliating blow.

His chief opponent, Mr Benny Gantz, a former military chief and leader of the centrist Blue and White party, emerged slightly ahead of the conservative Likud leader and seemed on course to be given the first chance to form Israel's next government.

But by Wednesday (Sept 25), in a surprise twist, Mr Netanyahu - long called "the magician" for his political survival skills - was back on centre stage.

President Reuven Rivlin chose him to try to cobble together a coalition, opening the door to a continued shift to the right for Israel and offering a potential political lifeline to Mr Netanyahu, who faces a looming indictment for corruption.

Still, the reversal of fortune falls short of a victory, and Mr Netanyahu's future in office remains far from assured.

He has 28 days to assemble a majority of at least 61 seats in Parliament and no clear path to that number. The parties that have endorsed his bid for another term won just 55 seats.

Mr Netanyahu's chances of success are "not good but not impossible", said Professor Gadi Wolfsfeld, a political scientist at the Interdisciplinary Centre Herzliya.

"He's pulled rabbits out of the hat before."

Mr Netanyahu could tempt his former ally turned rival, Mr Avigdor Lieberman, leader of the secular, ultranationalist Yisrael Beiteinu, which won eight seats, back into a partnership.

But Mr Lieberman has said he would refuse to join a coalition with Mr Netanyahu's ultra-Orthodox coalition partners.

Mr Rivlin had been pushing Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gantz to forge a broad unity government including both their parties, saying that was the will of the voters.

But on Wednesday, Mr Netanyahu said a unity government was the only way out of the political stalemate.

One possibility gaining traction among pundits is that Mr Netanyahu won't be able to form a government and will return the mandate to Mr Rivlin, who could then give Mr Gantz a turn.

But Mr Netanyahu will be banking on Mr Gantz to fail, forcing Israel into a third election.

That would allow Mr Netanyahu to extend his tenure as prime minister until another election is decided. And he could blame Mr Gantz for not joining his government and bringing on an election few Israelis want.

"The main thing here," Prof Wolfsfeld said, "is who's going to be blamed if we have a third round of elections."

Mr Netanyahu, he added, "has nothing to lose."