Former MK Moti Yogev Reveals Plan for New National-Jewish Party
Former Knesset Member Moti Yogev has revealed that in recent months, he and a group of associates attempted to establish a new national-Jewish political party, inspired by the spirit of the former Jewish Home and National Religious Party (Mafdal). The group met the requirements for party registration but ultimately decided against submitting the application, citing a lack of resources and potential for splitting the national-Jewish camp.
Yogev, who previously served as a Knesset member for the Jewish Home party, stated that while the independent party initiative did not materialize, discussions regarding political integration and representation are ongoing. The initiative, detailed in a statement signed by Yogev and others including Efrat Local Council head Dov Schiller, aimed to create a religious-nationalist framework.
The group's decision not to register was based on a cost-benefit analysis. While a registered party gains political traction, the group lacked the necessary resources for an independent run and feared that a new party could inadvertently harm the broader national-Jewish political bloc. "We were concerned that establishing another party would be presented as a split in the national-Jewish camp and ultimately cause more harm than good," Yogev explained.
Concurrently, Yogev and his partners engaged in talks with existing parties, primarily with leaders and representatives of the Religious Zionism party and a party associated with Ofer Winter, as well as with rabbis and public figures. However, these integration efforts have also not yet yielded concrete results. Yogev noted that the parties have yet to "forge a genuine ideological and practical connection" for cooperation, estimating that a partial ideological alignment could have strengthened a party by about one and a half mandates.
Despite the unsuccessful attempts to secure funding for an independent party and the lack of ideological overlap with potential partners, Yogev and his associates maintain that the core idea of a national-Jewish party remains. They aim to reintroduce a party that emphasizes the connection between the people of Israel, the Torah of Israel, the Land of Israel, and the State of Israel, believing that the former Jewish Home voter base is now dispersed and inadequately represented. The possibility of integrating into another existing framework is still being explored, with Yogev stating, "We are still holding talks, for partnership and representation, God willing for the good."
