Smotrich Offers Cabinet Post to Rival Winter to Prevent Vote Splitting

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has offered a senior role in the Defense Ministry to Ofer Winter, leader of the "Am Israel" party, in an attempt to persuade him to withdraw from the upcoming Knesset elections. Smotrich proposed that Winter be appointed Minister of Defense with authority over immigration from Gaza and the conscription of Haredim (ultra-Orthodox Jews) into the IDF. The offer comes as Smotrich and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are making efforts to convince Winter to drop out of the race, fearing he will siphon votes from the right-wing bloc and potentially lead to the formation of a left-wing government.

"Am Israel" rejected the offer, stating that they are not interested in "job politics" and were not founded to be bought with positions. A statement from the party's sources read, "The people of Israel are fed up with job politics, which think people can be bought with a position." The party argued that if they were satisfied with the current state of the right-wing camp, they would have joined existing parties. They criticized the lack of integration of Haredim, the failure to achieve decisive outcomes, the exacerbation of national division, and the absence of immigration initiatives.

Winter himself declared that he would not bow to pressure to withdraw from the race. He stated that his party was established to offer an alternative to the right-wing public, which he believes is forced to choose between parties that boycott the right or coalition parties that succumb to political cronyism. Winter accused his political opponents, particularly from within his own camp, of engaging in "ugly and incomprehensible fire," including harassment of candidates and their families, private investigators, and spreading lies. He vowed not to succumb to such tactics, which he described as "yesterday's politics."

Addressing Smotrich's offer, Winter stated, "I heard Smotrich say in the past, with a lie, that he offered me the first place in his party, and tonight he is offering me another position, in a government that has not even been formed yet. Friends, you are mistaken. We didn't come for a job, as you are used to. We came to change. We came to lead a path. We came to serve those who serve, not to enable the continuation of cronyism and the distribution of positions."

Winter outlined conditions for his party's support of a future government, emphasizing his commitment to the national camp. He stated that his party would not support a government led by Yair Golan, nor would they give unconditional support to Netanyahu. "If they give the 'Soldier's Status Law' that cares for fighters and changes the country's priorities, they will get our support. If they don't give it, they won't. If they allow decisive action and voluntary immigration from Gaza, they will get our support. If they don't, they won't. It's very simple," Winter declared. He added that a strong "Am Israel" would prevent a government reliant on figures like Goldknopf and other operatives, and would instead enable a broad, serving right-wing government that defeats enemies, not its own people.