Netanyahu Proposes Compromise with Eight Reserved Slots and Primary Delay in Likud List

The Likud Constitution Committee, chaired by party center minister Haim Katz, convened on Monday with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to set the rules for shaping the Likud list for the 26th Knesset elections. The meeting, delayed multiple times due to Netanyahu's schedule and power struggles with MK David Bitan, resulted in a new compromise proposal granting Netanyahu significant maneuvering space.

Under the updated proposal, Netanyahu would receive eight reserved slots within the top 31 places on the list: three in the first ten, three in the second ten, and two in the third ten. The exact reserved positions are 3, 5, 9, 11, 15, 18, 26, and 31, with one slot specifically allocated to Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar. The plan also allows Netanyahu to promote selected MKs by swapping them with reserved slot holders.

Additionally, the primary elections date would be postponed from August 4 to August 17, 2026, giving Netanyahu's team more time to organize. This proposal counters MK David Bitan’s alternative plan, which sought to limit Netanyahu to only three reserved slots in realistic positions and maintain regular primaries.

To ease incumbent MKs’ concerns about the many reserved slots, the compromise permits ministers, deputy ministers, and MKs to run in district and sector slots previously reserved for newcomers. The proposal details regional and representative reserved slots voted on only by local party members, covering areas like Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, Tel Aviv, Negev, Galilee, and demographic groups such as women, youth, non-Jews, immigrants, and people with disabilities.

The Likud membership will vote on the entire compromise on July 16, 2026, not immediately. If approved, party members will select 12 candidates from the national list and one from their regional district. Meanwhile, reports indicate Netanyahu’s associates have contacted several Likud MKs, encouraging them to voluntarily withdraw from the primaries in exchange for executive or diplomatic roles outside the Knesset.