The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Sources in the Jewish Home: Netanyahu Separates Smutrich and Bennett Israel today

2021-01-07T21:56:18.612Z


| political Giving up the connection with the right? Smutrich prepares for independent run • Encouraged by the Prime Minister: Hagit Moshe, Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem, will run for the presidency of the Jewish Home Bennett and Smutrich Photography:  Oren Ben Hakon The Religious Zionist Party, led by MK Bezalel Smutrich, is preparing for the possibility of an independent run without a connection to the rig


Giving up the connection with the right?

Smutrich prepares for independent run • Encouraged by the Prime Minister: Hagit Moshe, Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem, will run for the presidency of the Jewish Home

  • Bennett and Smutrich

    Photography: 

    Oren Ben Hakon

The Religious Zionist Party, led by MK Bezalel Smutrich, is preparing for the possibility of an independent run without a connection to the right-wing party, and in recent days has launched a massive campaign in the networks and sectoral media to create echo and support for the party. 

While each side presents the controversy differently, with Bennett saying the struggle is for list positions only, while Smutrich presents the controversy ideologically, the decision to run jointly or separately may fall on the identity of the new chairman of the Jewish House. To be elected in a week and a half in the primaries held by the party. 

The internal battles within the right also occupied Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this week, who began interfering in what was happening in the party to the right of the Likud, in an attempt to arrange the map according to the bloc's needs and increase his chances of winning the general election.

The first person to announce his candidacy for the presidency of the Jewish House, after Rabbi Rafi Peretz announced that he intends to retire from political life and not run for office, is Nir Orbach, the party's director general. And the establishment of the new right with Ayelet Shaked, a party that actually became a rival party to the Jewish home, and led to great anger among party activists and members of religious Zionism in general about Bennett, Bennett and Orbach remained on good terms. 

If Orbach wins for a man in both parties, there is no doubt that the two will lead an agreement to connect the parties - something that presents Bezalel Smutrich with a dilemma and may weaken his bargaining power.

It is estimated that in order to run separately Smutrich will need all parts of religious Zionism, and joining the Jewish House to the right will impair its ability to ensure the passage of the blocking percentage. 

Another insurance card for Bennett is Itamar Ben Gvir.

Jewish power has a loyal audience, which is not large enough to give the party the high blocking percentage on its own, but in the case of joining another party, Jewish power may add between one seat and two.

A critical figure in the case of the Religious Zionist Party, if it runs independently.

Smutrich is not eager to add Ben Gvir to his list, but does not rule out adding other factors, compatible with Ben Gvir, that is, from the deeper Haredi stream, as a replacement for Ben Gvir himself, and a wink to the same target audience. 

Smutrich is also staring at the ultra-Orthodox sector, which is in the midst of a great struggle and a sense of disgust at the Hasidic current from the existing framework - Agudat Yisrael within Torah Judaism, and may launch a special campaign to sweep ultra-Orthodox to vote for him. 

What will give the more significant impetus for a separate run by Smutrich is a case in which the Jewish home is connected to a joint run - without connection to the right.

This is also the prime minister's favorite scenario.

As far as Netanyahu is concerned, there will be a greater chance of reducing Bennett's right through a separate run by Smutrich, and such a move will open the door for the Likud to sign a surplus agreement with the Religious Zionist Party.

A party that does not sign a surplus agreement may lose until a mandate, so Netanyahu tried at the last minute to pressure Aryeh Deri to sign an agreement between the Likud and Shas, but Deri refused on the grounds that Shas traditionally signs with Torah Judaism and does not intend to break this tradition.

Face Orbach

But in order for the Jewish home to be connected to Smutrich and not to Bennett, Nir Orbach must be neutralized and defeated.

Netanyahu's entourage was looking for such a candidate and discovered Hagit Moshe, the deputy mayor of Jerusalem, who is considered a strong and popular candidate who can defeat Orbach. 

This week, Netanyahu called Moshe and persuaded her to announce her candidacy.

This is after strong figures of religious Zionism have been trying for several days to persuade her to face it.

Among them are Rabbis Chaim Druckman and Eitan Eisman, as well as many activists and activists in the sector.

Moshe acceded to the prime minister's pleas and on Tuesday announced that she would face Orbach.

Source: israelhayom

All news articles on 2021-01-07

You may like

Trends 24h

News/Politics 2024-03-28T06:04:53.137Z

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.