New Delhi: Two former prime ministers of Israel, right-wing Naftali Bennett and centrist Yair Lapid, issued statements on Sunday announcing the merger of their parties, namely Bennett 2026 and There is a Future. Both are considered to be current Prime Minitser Benjamin Netanyahu’s biggest political rivals, now joining hands in an attempt to oust his coalition government in the upcoming election expected later this year.
A major announcement
In the announcement, Naftali Bennett’s office said the new party will be called Together, and that he will be its leader. “I am pleased to announce that tonight, together with my friend Yair Lapid, I am taking the most Zionist and patriotic step we have ever taken for our country,” Bennett said in a joint televised statement with Lapid. During the televised statement, Lapid said, “Bennett is a right-wing politician, but an honest one, and there is trust between us.”
“This move is intended to unite the bloc, put an end to internal divisions, and focus all efforts on winning the critical upcoming elections – and leading Israel forward into the future,” Lapid further added.
Why is it important?
Their alliance is aimed at uniting a fragmented opposition that looks to oust current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from power, whose public support seems to have waned in recently. Both Lapid and Bennett have been outspoken critics of Netanyahu’s handling of the country’s wars since the October 7, 2023, attack. Lapid labeling the two-week ceasefire agreed with Iran a “political disaster”.
Bennett said that if elected, he would establish a national commission of inquiry into what he calls failures leading up to the October 7 Hamas attack, which the Netanyahu government has rejected and has often been criticised for. Bennett and Lapid have joined forces prior as well, putting an end to Netanyahu’s successive 12-year tenure in a 2021 election, only to form a coalition government that survived barely 18 months.
By bringing together a right-wing figure like Bennett with a centrist leader like Lapid, the alliance looks to broaden its appeal across ideological lines. If the partnership holds and translates into coordinated campaigning, it could reshape electoral arithmetic in Israel, going against Netanyahu’s coalition building skills.