A month and two days before the elections, I meet the chairman of the Jewish Home, the Minister of the Interior Ayelet Shaked.
Her situation in the polls is not good to say the least, but her mood is high. She is sure that she will pass the threshold, and is even marking a position: Minister of Justice.
Shaked is trying to convey that the blocking percentage, which is far from it according to all the surveys, is an achievable goal.
"There is a large public on the right who feel they have no one to vote for, we are the address," she claims.
"The only thing that bothers that public is the percentage of blocking. Within two weeks, the polls will increase significantly. We are in a kind of chicken and egg situation. People see the polls and are reluctant to support. At this stage, you should ignore the polls and vote according to the set of values - and then see later. A senior member of one of the major parties said To me they did a survey according to which I have two and a half mandates that vote for me, and another three mandates that want to but are afraid of the blocking percentage."
Is this a difficult time for you?
"This is not an easy period in my professional life. When I started working with Netanyahu he had 12 mandates, I saw with my own eyes what it is like for politicians in difficult situations. I have excellent partners. Brodney is a serious fighter. I spoke with Avigdor Kahalani this week and he told me: 'You will win against All the odds, always when you're having a hard time remember me fighting in the Bakka Valley - so everything is relative in life.' Two rabbis in religious Zionism told me that I must run to the end even if I don't pass, because 'we and our shoulders have no one to vote for.'"
"We will not cancel his trial."
Netanyahu and Shaked, photo: Oren Ben Hakon
"We will not support a French law"
Shaked declares during the interview that "I will demand as a condition for entering the government the justice portfolio. Until I entered the Ministry of Justice there were no reforms in the justice system. I was the first to do so. I built a conservative camp in the court, I saved the settlement of Mitzpe Kerami, and now there is a great challenge in dealing with Arab crime, Both the criminal and the national. During my time, I also started to fight against polygamy, heavy punishment should also be applied to offenses that today have no punishment."
Will you do French law? Will you make changes in the committee for appointing judges?
"We will not make a French law, we will not fire the prosecutor, we will not cancel Netanyahu's trial.
A strengthening clause should be passed and teeth should be added to the Commission for Auditing the Prosecutor's Office.
On the issue of changing the committee for the appointment of judges, I think it is impossible to do everything, but all these years I always thought that it was necessary to add power to the politicians within the committee."
"I don't regret asking for forgiveness"
Do you regret the move of forming the government and breaking the promises to the voter? There is a feeling as if your apology was only to please the voters' feelings, but in fact you would not have acted otherwise.
"I asked for forgiveness for what they felt and for the fact that I had to break some of my promises."
Today, in retrospect, would you do it again or do you regret it now?
"It's not a question of yes or no, you also have to understand the situation I was in. I won't form a government that relies on anti-Zionist parties, it's very little wisdom to say in retrospect, I can say what I've learned a lesson and what I'm doing next."
So there is no apology or regret for what happened.
"I want to go back to that point in time for a moment. I am doing everything I can to form a right-wing government. After Smotrich refused to form a government of 59 based on Raam and there were no defectors, I realized that it was either that or another election that would eventually establish a left-wing government with the Arabs .
That's why I made a difficult decision to back Bennett."
Ayelet Shaked, photo: Eric Sultan
Your messages are contradictory, aren't you now sitting in the government with the Prime Minister. Why don't you actually resign?
"Resigning is a populist and irresponsible step. We established a partisan government and we need to take responsibility for our actions. After Sa'ar and Elkin entered the state camp, there is no one in the government to protect the values of the right. Only now during the election period, I stopped the appointment of Yossi Beilin, I built in Jerusalem despite heavy pressure from the Americans , I prevented the cultural agreement that discriminated against the residents of the Trooper and Lapid settlement, and I also deported terrorists."
"Don't neglect the Ministry of the Interior"
The argument is that you want the Ministry of the Interior if there are six elections, and also that it is easier for you in the campaign that way.
"Senior activists on the right sent me messages not to abandon the Ministry of the Interior to the left. In terms of the campaign, it would actually be beneficial for me to resign. I am not abandoning the Ministry of the Interior to anyone else until a government is formed."
You broke a lot of your promises when you formed the government. Less than a month ago you said that you would not lend a hand to a narrow government, that you would not complete to 61, and now with the Jewish Home you have reversed yourself and are saying yes to a narrow right-wing government led by Netanyahu.
"I didn't break most of the promises, we broke some of the promises. With Yoaz Handel we definitely talked about a broad right-wing government, and even today I haven't changed my mind - this is the best option. The dispute with Handel was that if it was either a narrow right-wing government or elections, I preferred a right-wing government Trouble and he is elections, and on that basis we parted ways. I have not changed my mind. A broad government is better, a narrow government of 61 will last a few months."
"Intended to prevent the next attack": Minister Shaked on deporting the terrorist's family from the attack on the Governor's Palace
But you didn't talk like that at the beginning of the month with Handel. You didn't talk about a narrow government, you said you wouldn't let it happen. The claim is that you go from campaign to campaign.
"There is no zigzag here, and that's why the partnership with Handel was dissolved. I also made it clear with him from day one that if we don't succeed in working for a broad right-wing government - we will go for a narrow right-wing government, and Yoaz didn't live with that and that's why it fell apart. I'm very, very consistent. Even today I say that we should A broad right-wing government, even if the right-wing bloc reaches 61, 62 mandates with the Jewish Home - and brings in another party."
When you see Silman who caught herself in time and has a political future today, do you feel like you missed the train?
"I don't envy them. I stand behind my choices, I'm ready to bear the consequences and work hard to restore the public's trust. In practice, in my actions I haven't budged a millimeter from my values."
Building on female leadership
They say you're a liar, how do you answer that?
"I backed the leader of my party, when I am the head of the party we returned to the right-wing bloc. I want to tell that public and remind that the campaign was that there would be no fifth election and Bennett would be the prime minister.
I'm ready to work hard to earn the public's trust, and it's not just me, it's a team.
We are a party with three women in the top six, and unfortunately in the right-wing parties the women do not get a voice.
I am the first in history to head a right-wing party.
I am reading a map for women who will give strength to female leadership."
Mansor Abbas and Ayelet Shaked, photo: Oren Ben Hakon
So are you ready to let Gantz into the government even in exchange for not all reforms in the justice system being promoted?
"It is worth it for governmental stability. After a division of three years, more parts of the people should feel that they belong. There are many things that can be done for the right even when it is with other parties, as I have proven in the last year."
10 mandates for Arabs
Since the split in the joint venture, Netanyahu is 61-60 in the polls, so maybe he doesn't need you, maybe it's better that you step down because you hold a mandate that will go to the right-wing bloc.
"Your assumption is wrong. I spoke with leaders and pollsters in the Arab sector and they say that Hadash, Ta'al and Ra'am will reach 10 mandates without Balad, and then Netanyahu returns to 59 mandates. Our voters, some of them will vote for the state camp which is a party Left and no matter how many domes they count in their top ten, they are not the home of religious Zionism. Some voters will vote for the right-wing bloc, and some will not vote in the end. We are running to the end. If Netanyahu puts his emotions aside, rationally they should help us pass the percentage the blockade".
Last survey before the elections and you don't pass. are you still running If you will be offered a short term for the Likud primaries, or other positions?
"We are running to the end. You will see that in two weeks we will rise. I say unequivocally - a personal proposal for me does not interest me. I will not be offered proposals. I am not alone either, my party is not looking for positions, we want to be Knesset members and make an impact."
Bennett and Shaked.
"He was a partner", photo: Oren Ben Hakon
Bennett implied that you are in post-trauma from the government. are you in touch Do you see him as a future partner?
"We are in daily contact. I have no idea what will happen in the future, I chose to stay and he retired."
He is the one who created a culture of a prime minister with five mandates.
"We are in an anomalous situation of five election systems that created crazy things like the last government, unnatural things, a paranoid structure that Gantz and Netanyahu created. The reason is that there are party leaders who boycott Netanyahu not because of his trial but for personal motives, and that Netanyahu, after failing to form a government, does not His place is for the next generation."
Why should Netanyahu vacate his seat?
"Because he failed to form a government four times in a row. It's time to make way for the right-wing camp, that's my personal opinion. But on the other hand, I'm a practical person and I think that boycotts are wrong, I understand that over a million people vote for Netanyahu. Without me, Netanyahu would be History today, I'm the only one who prevented the defendant law in the last government."
Is Mansour Abbas a supporter of terrorism in your eyes? In the previous elections you supported his disqualification for this.
"He does not support terrorism, he condemned in his voice in the strongest possible way that there are terrorist attacks. Netanyahu held negotiations with Abbas.
Mansour told me that Sarah and Bibi hosted him very nicely.
He told me: 'I know Balfour intimately, I'm quite shocked that you weren't there, I can give you a tour there.'"
Walid Taha said in Operation Dawn that he would support his people against the attacks.
"This is an outrageous statement. The problem with RAM is that the members of the list did not agree with Mansour Abbas' views."
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