Right-Wing Parties Forge Alliances Ahead of Election Deadline

As the deadline for submitting party lists for the upcoming Knesset elections approaches, the right-wing political landscape is experiencing a flurry of consolidation efforts. The Religious Zionism party, led by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and Moshe Feiglin's Zehut party have officially announced they will run together as a technical bloc. This alliance aims to maximize the right-wing vote and ensure they surpass the electoral threshold.

Smotrich stated that the upcoming election is critical for the future of the national camp, emphasizing that security, settlement, the justice system, preventing a Palestinian state, and enacting major changes are all at stake. He warned that division risks wasting right-wing votes and stressed the responsibility to unite. Feiglin added that Zehut was founded on the need for a new spirit, hope, and a vision of freedom and victory, promising to ensure their supporters' votes were not wasted and their values represented.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly exerting significant pressure on the 'Am Israel' party, led by Brigadier General (res.) Ofer Winter, to prevent them from running independently. Netanyahu's plan involves offering Winter's party four reserved spots on other lists, two on Religious Zionism and two on Likud, to avoid vote dilution.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir welcomed the Smotrich-Feiglin union and urged Winter to join them, arguing there is no room for a separate party that is not polling above the electoral threshold and that commitment to the right-wing bloc has been proven.

However, Ofer Winter and Yosef Haddad of 'Am Israel' have rejected these pressures, asserting their intention to run independently. Winter declared that the Israeli people desire something new and that 'Am Israel' is the sole address for those seeking a decisive outcome in Gaza and genuine concern for soldiers and their families, stating they would not be a "human shield" for anyone. Haddad added that 'Am Israel' will present a slate of new, clean, and fighting individuals, arguing that true unity involves their movement, which seeks leadership untainted by past failures.