Likud Candidate Warns of Vote Splitting to Ofer Winter's List
Translated & summarized from Now 14 by baba
Yaakov Bardugo, a Likud candidate, warned that Ofer Winter's new list is attracting approximately 2.5 mandates from Likud voters, potentially jeopardizing the right-wing bloc's electoral success. Bardugo compared Winter to former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, suggesting Winter might cooperate with non-right-wing factions. He cited the 1992 elections as a historical example of vote splitting leading to negative outcomes for the right.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Likud candidate Yaakov Bardugo warns Ofer Winter's list is drawing 2.5 mandates from Likud voters.
- Bardugo compares Ofer Winter's political trajectory to that of former PM Naftali Bennett.
- Winter's potential cooperation with figures outside the right-wing bloc is a major concern.
- Bardugo claims Winter and Yosef Haddad rejected significant political offers from the right.
- The 1992 elections are cited as a historical example of vote splitting harming the right.
Yaakov Bardugo, a candidate on the Likud party's Knesset list, has warned of potential vote leakage from Likud to the list headed by Ofer Winter, cautioning that this could harm the right-wing bloc's chances of winning elections. Bardugo stated in an interview on the "Ptihi Et Shi" program that approximately two and a half Knesset mandates worth of Likud voters are currently leaning towards Winter.
Bardugo drew parallels between Winter's political trajectory and that of former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, suggesting Winter might collaborate with elements outside the right-wing bloc. He asserted that Winter's actions and statements indicate a potential alignment with figures like Liberman, who Bardugo claims would form coalitions with the "other side" and that Eizenkot, whom Winter considers a dialogue partner, would also align with the Muslim Brotherhood.
When asked if Winter might emulate Bennett by setting demands for joining a government, Bardugo responded with a definitive "one hundred percent." He also revealed that Winter and Yosef Haddad had previously rejected significant political offers, including the number one spot on Smotrich's list and the number three position in Likud, interpreting their rejection as a clear statement of disassociation from the right-wing camp.
Recalling the 1992 elections as a cautionary tale, Bardugo cited the consequences of vote splitting on the right, linking it to the Oslo Accords and later to Bennett's premiership. He characterized the phenomenon as stemming from "megalomania" and an overestimation of one's own influence.