Overview
- The joint list, announced Sunday by former prime ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, will run under the name Zusammen with Bennett as lead candidate for an election due by late October.
- Recent surveys reported across outlets show a tight race, with the Bennett–Lapid list near 27 Knesset seats and Likud around 28, leaving both short of the 61 needed to govern.
- Bennett says the alliance will partner only with what he calls zionist parties, a stance that sidelines Arab parties and makes a post‑election majority harder to assemble, even as a Lapid ally spoke of building a strong zionist base.
- The pair have invited former IDF chief Gadi Eisenkot to join, and his reputation with centrist and some right‑leaning voters could broaden their reach if he accepts.
- The alliance echoes their 2021 effort that toppled Netanyahu before collapsing after about 18 months, and they now court voters with promises touching daily life, including stricter enforcement of ultra‑Orthodox conscription and moves toward civil marriage and public transit on the Sabbath.