Bennett's Party Warns If Support Falls Below 14 Seats, Gadi Eizenkot Will Lead Opposition Bloc

Ahead of upcoming elections, Naftali Bennett's party, Yachdav, is intensifying its campaign efforts to improve its standing in the polls. Despite optimistic public messaging, a senior party official privately acknowledged that if the party's support drops to around 13 to 14 Knesset seats, former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot is expected to become the leader of the opposition bloc. The official emphasized that as long as Yachdav remains above this threshold, the contest for bloc leadership and the prime ministership remains open, but below it, Eizenkot would likely emerge as the leading candidate for the opposition camp.

This assessment comes amid a recent decline in Yachdav’s poll numbers, prompting the party to accelerate grassroots activities and campaign efforts to halt the erosion and boost its election prospects. Additionally, Hillel Kobrinsky, an associate of Yair Lapid, recently joined efforts to strengthen the party's campaign. Bennett himself has been in the United States participating in a conference with senior American officials, hoping this engagement will help regain campaign momentum.

The party’s internal calculations suggest that if Yachdav falls below the critical seat count, the chairman of the Yisrael Beiteinu party, Avigdor Lieberman, could become the leading opposition candidate. The developments highlight the fluid nature of the opposition leadership race as election day approaches.