Netanyahu's Likud Targets Ben-Gvir in Election Campaign

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's primary objective is to strengthen Likud, which internal polls suggest could win 31 seats, and to secure its leadership in forming the next government. Likud officials do not expect all votes lost by Otzma Yehudit to return directly to Likud; instead, they anticipate these votes will be distributed among other parties in the right-wing bloc, including Shas and Bezalel Smotrich's Religious Zionism party. Likud is also supporting Religious Zionism to ensure it crosses the electoral threshold, and is targeting candidates Ofer Winter and Handel-Zalicha.

Concurrently, the Shas party is running its own campaign to reclaim younger and traditional voters who have defected to Ben-Gvir, planning to use religious leaders and rabbis to appeal to them. Meanwhile, Ben-Gvir is attempting to attract Likud voters by warning them against a potential coalition that would include Gadi Eisenkot. Tensions within the bloc have already risen following a recent surplus vote agreement between Likud and Religious Zionism that excluded Otzma Yehudit.