Ben-Gvir Refuses Surplus Deal with Winter, Citing 'Bennett 2'
Translated & summarized from Makor Rishon by baba
Otzma Yehudit chairman Itamar Ben-Gvir announced he will not sign a surplus vote agreement with Ofer Winter's Am Ech Yisrael party, calling Winter "Bennett 2." This comes as parties rush to finalize deals before the election deadline. Yoaz Hendel's party had previously refused a deal with Ben-Gvir and proposed one with Winter. Without these agreements, Otzma Yehudit risks losing a potential Knesset seat.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Itamar Ben-Gvir refused a surplus vote agreement with Ofer Winter, calling him 'Bennett 2'.
- Three parties, Otzma Yehudit, Am Ech Yisrael, and the Reservists-Economic Party, have not yet signed surplus vote agreements.
- Yoaz Hendel's party previously declined a deal with Ben-Gvir and offered one to Winter.
- Ben-Gvir's refusal means Otzma Yehudit may run without surplus agreements.
- These agreements can significantly impact the number of Knesset seats a party receives.
With just two weeks until the election, Israeli parties are rushing to finalize surplus vote agreements, which allow parties to gain additional Knesset seats if they receive votes slightly exceeding the threshold for a single mandate. Three parties hovering around or just above the electoral threshold, Otzma Yehudit led by Itamar Ben-Gvir, Am Ech Yisrael led by Ofer Winter, and the Reservists-Economic Party led by Yoaz Hendel and Yaron Zelekha, have yet to sign such deals.
The political ramifications of these agreements can be significant, potentially granting a party an extra seat with just over half the votes needed for one mandate. A political drama unfolded Tuesday when Ben-Gvir declared on social media platform X that he would not sign a surplus agreement with Winter, stating, "Winter is Bennett 2, therefore I will not sign a surplus agreement with him."
This declaration comes after Yoaz Hendel had previously announced his refusal to sign a surplus agreement with Ben-Gvir. Hendel had instead proposed an agreement with Ofer Winter, aiming to prevent a government coalition that includes Haredi or Arab parties, and urging Winter to retract his statement of support for a government led by Netanyahu, citing concerns over conscription if parties like Goldknopp are part of the coalition.
Given Ben-Gvir's refusal and Hendel's prior stance, Otzma Yehudit is likely to run in the elections without any surplus agreements. This means that if Otzma Yehudit receives votes equivalent to slightly more than 7.5 mandates, the party will only secure seven Knesset seats. Had they signed an agreement with a party that passed the electoral threshold, they could have potentially gained an eighth seat.
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