Despite a steady drop in the polls and growing political speculation that their partnership could unravel, Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid have discussed the issue in recent days and firmly ruled out breaking up their joint political project, party sources told Walla. One source said that even if the alliance falls into single-digit support, “there will be no breakup,” adding that Bennett and Lapid believe in the project and “there is no situation in which everything is dismantled,” not even closer to the election.
Party officials say they are not panicking over the polling and believe media cycles move faster than political ones. “We understand the data, but we also understand that the media timetable is different from the political timetable. There is still a lot of time until the election,” one source said. They added that the pair will not change course because of polling swings. The alliance, they said, is ideological and long term, not merely tactical, and both men think it is the right political combination to win.
The campaign is also backed by an organized ground operation aimed at election day. Officials pointed to Yesh Atid’s 2013 campaign, when the party started with about 12 seats in the polls and ended with 19, as proof that early numbers can improve. In the coming weeks, Bennett and Lapid are expected to sharpen the message “only together” and introduce new working plans and messaging, with expectations that the numbers will improve as the election gets closer.
The partnership is already physically anchored, too, with the two renting a shared office building in Ra’anana on a signed lease running until after the expected October election. On Monday, Lapid publicly addressed the polling decline for the first time in a faction meeting, saying, “There will be ups and there will be downs. I did not make this union because of polls, but because I believe the path to victory for the Israeli center is to connect with a trustworthy leader and the liberal camp. That is the way to win. No other way will win the most critical election in the country’s history.” He added that the alliance took time to organize, but insisted, “This is the only union that can win.”
