Former Israeli prime ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid unveiled Monday that they are merging their parties into a joint ticket dubbed "Together - Led by Bennett" - as a major challenge to current leader Benjamin Netanyahu in the upcoming elections.
During a press conference Bennett said the alliance with Lapid is the "most Zionist and patriotic act we have ever done, for the sake of our country" - adding that the "era of division is over." Netanyahu out soon?
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Bennett will lead the ticket as its prime ministerial candidate, and has invited Gadi Eisenkot, chairman of the Yashar party and a former army chief of staff, to join, saying that “our door is open for you too.”
Bennett describes himself as a "right-wing, liberal Zionist" and has emphasized he will only rely on "Zionist parties" - and so no Arab representative support will be involved in his coalition. "We're not in the left bloc or the right bloc, we're in the bloc of the entire Israeli nation," he proclaimed.
And Lapid has announced, "We are uniting today to win the elections and to establish a Zionist government, strong and stable. A partnership between the center and right, between religious and secular, between north and south - without draft dodging and without extremism."
"Israelis deserve a government that will provide security, focus on education, lower prices, fight corruption, and draft the Haredim into the army," he added.
Lapid said he and his Yesh Atid party are "setting ego aside and doing what is right for the State of Israel," adding that "to win the elections, the entire Israeli center must stand behind Naftali Bennett."
Fresh polling featured in The Jerusalem Post predicts the 'Together' party would win 27 seats if elections were held today:
In the previous survey, Likud and “Bennett 2026” were tied at 24 seats each, and Bennett and Lapid’s parties together reached 31.
Additionally, former IDF chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot appears to benefit from the merger, with his party rising from 12 to 15 seats. The result positions him as a central player in the opposition camp.
If Eisenkot were to join Bennett and Lapid, the unified list would rise to 41 seats, making it far larger than Likud. Still, the bloc map would remain unchanged, with the opposition unable to reach a 61-seat majority without the Arab parties.
But Bibi's coalition would still be ahead. Bennet has further declared, "After 30 years, it is time to part with Netanyahu and open a new chapter for Israel."
Indeed, Netanyahu is the longest serving prime minister in Israel's history, but the clock is ticking as his government is now in the final months of its four-year term, with new elections required to be held by the end of October. Lapid and Bennet first united and tried to defeat Netanyahu once before, but failed.