Could it be that Prime Minister Netanyahu wants the joint list stronger than ever? In my opinion: unequivocally yes, and that is exactly why he is running such a negative campaign against her. Netanyahu probably knew that motifs like "without the joint there is no government for Gantz" would only encourage the identification and rallying of voters around the joint list, and he probably took that into account. At the same time, he is running an intense campaign against Gantz, on the back of the joint list. Most of it is factually incorrect, not to say false, but it is intended to delegitimize Gantz, marking him as the prime minister who will lean on some or other support of the Arab parties. Such a campaign would also further aggravate Lieberman, who would appear to be an engine or at the very least "embarrassed" to join such a government. In any case: the larger the unified list, the greater Gantz's dependence on it.

In this campaign, Netanyahu achieved three goals: the first was to come out first and attack the joint list alone. Under the guise of "Arab MKs doing nothing" for the Arab population in Israel, Netanyahu campaigned a negative, rather racist campaign that left very negative precipitation against the joint list and all its members without exception. You have to remember: there are about 400,000 voters behind the elected Arabs, who have been labeled as necessary along with their elected officials as illegitimate. True, political opposition to the party must be distinguished from hostility to its voters, but if a similar campaign had been waged against Jewish MPs in France or the US, Netanyahu would probably be the first to launch an offensive against racism and anti-Semitism.

The second goal achieved in Netanyahu's campaign is to offend Bani Gantz among Jewish voters. It is well known that a large number of blue and white voters hold political positions moving from the center to the right, but following Netanyahu's campaign, the former chief of staff - the Israeli army commander - was labeled among Jewish voters as "Arab lover" or at least for the sake of forming a government even "ready to be" Many of the Jewish public who oppose the Arab parties' participation in the coalition (not in government) did not internalize that such a historic move could serve the State of Israel no less than the Arabs. The pragmatic and state responsibilities, too.

The third goal Netanyahu has achieved in this campaign is the neutralization of Avigdor Lieberman, who will find it very difficult to recommend or join a coalition led by Benny Gantz supported by the joint list. Here, Lieberman will face the possibility of a last resort - or a place of honor - to join the right-wing national government of Benjamin Netanyahu, or join a unity government that the Likud can "impose" on white and blue.