Likud Lawmaker Tali Gottlieb Backs Netanyahu for PM, Pushes for Right-Wing Government

Member of Knesset Tali Gottlieb, who recently joined the Otzma Yehudit party led by Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, has stated that her faction will recommend Benjamin Netanyahu for prime minister but will push him towards a right-wing government. Gottlieb, formerly of the Likud party, expressed concern that Netanyahu might seek to form a broad coalition that excludes Ben-Gvir, potentially even including Benny Gantz's National Unity party.

In an interview with Channel 14, Gottlieb voiced her distress, saying, "I tell you here with great sorrow, Prime Minister Netanyahu might sit with [Benny] Gantz, as we have already seen from briefings from his side, that he is not interested in sitting with Ben-Gvir." She emphasized her commitment to being a "right-wing marker" within any future government, asserting that her party needs to achieve a "high double-digit" number of seats to ensure their influence.

Gottlieb insisted that Netanyahu would prefer to form a government with Gantz over one with Ben-Gvir. "We will recommend Prime Minister Netanyahu as prime minister, but we will pull him to the right," she declared. The report also briefly mentioned Benny Gantz's own estimations regarding his party's potential seat count in new elections.