Otzma Yehudit Party Finalizes Knesset List With Key Placements

Otzma Yehudit party leader and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir informed Knesset Member Limor Son Har Melech on Thursday that she will be placed fifth on the party's list for the upcoming Knesset elections. Isaac Kroizer will be placed sixth. This decision comes as parties finalize their electoral slates before the Tuesday deadline.

Son Har Melech's fifth-place ranking signifies a promotion from her previous position, placing her ahead of Tzvika Fogel, who was ranked higher in the previous election. The current list includes Ben-Gvir, Tali Gottlieb in second place, Yitzhak Wasserlauf in third, Amichai Eliyahu in fourth, followed by Son Har Melech and Kroizer.

Son Har Melech, currently the Deputy Knesset Speaker and a former chair of the Health Committee, is a prominent figure in the religious-nationalist community. During her tenure, she championed significant legislation, including a death penalty bill for terrorists, the repeal of the Disengagement Law and the return of settlements to northern Samaria, and halting UNRWA operations in Israel. She also advocated for harsher penalties for nationalistically motivated sex offenses and promoted gender-segregated studies in academia. Additionally, she led caucuses for the Land of Israel, religious and Haredi women, and the renewal of settlement in Gaza.

Her fifth-place placement underscores Ben-Gvir's perceived importance of Son Har Melech within the party. This follows Ben-Gvir's recent announcement that Knesset Member Tali Gottlieb, who recently moved from the Likud party to Otzma Yehudit, would be placed second. Gottlieb secured the second spot after MK Yitzhak Wasserlauf relinquished his position to move to third.