Religious Zionist and Identity Parties Unite for Election Run

Bezalel Smotrich, leader of the Religious Zionist Party and current Finance Minister, and Moshe Feiglin, chairman of the Zehut party, are set to sign an agreement on Tuesday evening to run together in the upcoming elections. Under the terms of the deal, Feiglin will receive the second spot on the joint list, as well as positions 8, 10, and 11. Following this union, efforts will be made to also bring Ofer Winter, who launched his own party "Am Israel" last week, into the alliance.

The announcement of the agreement came shortly after Smotrich abruptly ended a tour in southern Israel due to "significant political developments" and returned to his party’s headquarters. This merger follows earlier reports of advanced negotiations between Smotrich and Feiglin to form a technical bloc aimed at ensuring they pass the electoral threshold. The Religious Zionist Party's strength had reportedly weakened following Winter's entry into the race, with several polls showing the party falling below the required percentage to enter the Knesset.

While Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was not privy to the details of the negotiations, he reportedly offered his general support for the initiative. The agreement reportedly reserves top-10 spots on the list for Winter and his associates, including Yosef Haddad and Lali Deri. A recent poll by Channel 12 indicated that both parties running separately would fail to pass the electoral threshold, garnering only 2.6% and 2.1% of the vote, respectively. However, the combined list was projected to win 5 seats, while Winter, running alone, would fall below the threshold.