Likud Official: Surplus Vote Agreement With Smotrich to Be Signed in Two Weeks

A senior Likud official clarified on Tuesday that the surplus vote agreement between the Likud party and the Religious Zionism party will be signed in approximately two weeks. The delay is attributed to a technicality, as the official signature form from the Election Committee for surplus vote agreements has not yet been distributed to the parties, and is expected to be released in about two weeks according to the committee's schedule.

This clarification comes a week after the two parties initially agreed to sign the surplus vote deal. While both parties have stated the delay is purely technical, some in the political system speculated it might be a deliberate move by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to maintain maneuvering room with Ofer Winter's party. However, Likud officials have rejected these claims, emphasizing that the signing is a foregone conclusion and the delay is a matter of procedure.

Earlier reports had suggested that Likud would sign a surplus vote agreement with Winter's "Am Israel" party, while Religious Zionism would align with Otzma Yehudit. However, the final agreement was reached between Likud and Religious Zionism.