Ben Gvir Rejects Renewed Alliance With Smotrich, Urges Separate Runs

National Security Minister and Otzma Yehudit leader Itamar Ben Gvir is ruling out another merger with Bezalel Smotrich's Religious Zionism party. In a conversation with Maariv correspondent Anna Barski, Ben Gvir laid out a different electoral strategy than the one that previously brought the two parties together.

Ben Gvir said Smotrich should run in a separate, sector-focused list, while Otzma Yehudit should run on its own. "Smotrich must run in another party," he said, adding, "Smotrich must run in one party and we in another party." In his view, forcing a political union would actually hurt the right-wing bloc rather than help it.

He argued that separate runs are the only way to preserve a path to a right-wing government after the election. "Otherwise there is no option for a right-wing government," Ben Gvir said, claiming that each party should maximize support among its natural base instead of creating artificial combinations that drive voters away.

Ben Gvir said the division of labor on the right should be between a sectoral party and a broader national one. He said, "The only option for a right-wing government is that Smotrich runs in a sectoral party," and added that he believes Smotrich "will pass the electoral threshold." By contrast, he said Otzma Yehudit must appeal to "all of the people of Israel."