With Israel’s parliamentary election approaching, the leaders of the opposition’s so-called “Change Bloc” have agreed to temporarily set aside their most contentious dispute: who should lead a potential government after the election.
Yair Lapid hosted Naftali Bennett, Gadi Eisenkot, Avigdor Lieberman and Yair Golan at his Tel Aviv home on Saturday evening. The meeting followed weeks of public disagreements over the leadership of the opposition camp and competition between the parties for the position of largest faction.
The five leaders agreed that the question of who will become the bloc’s candidate for prime minister will not be discussed before the election. Instead, they intend to concentrate on expanding the bloc’s overall support and coordinating their campaigns.
Leadership Question Postponed Until After the Election
The decision represents a tactical attempt to reduce internal competition during the final weeks of the campaign.
The parties agreed to return to the question of the premiership after the election, taking the electoral results into account. The leaders also signed a joint declaration stating that, despite ideological differences, replacing the current government is their common objective.
Bennett said after the meeting that the participants had put personal considerations aside and committed themselves to cooperation before and after election day.
The agreement follows a particularly tense period between Eisenkot, Bennett and Lieberman. Eisenkot had argued that the bloc should establish itself behind a single candidate, while Bennett and Lieberman had resisted committing themselves in advance to his candidacy.
From Internal Competition to Voter Expansion
The immediate challenge for the opposition is no longer only the distribution of mandates between its parties, but whether it can attract additional voters from outside its traditional electoral base.
The parties are therefore discussing a division of electoral “territories” in an effort to minimize competition for the same voters.
Yisrael Beiteinu is seeking support among liberal-right voters and former Likud voters. Eisenkot’s Yashar is targeting traditional voters and moderate religious-Zionist constituencies, while Bennett and Lapid are focusing on liberal and centrist voters who have moved away from Benjamin Netanyahu.
The strategy is designed to allow each party to concentrate on different sections of the electorate rather than conduct parallel campaigns aimed at the same voters.
The Right-of-Center Vote Is a Key Battleground
One of the central strategic questions is whether the opposition can attract voters who previously supported Netanyahu or other right-wing parties but are now undecided.
Eisenkot has argued that Bennett and Lieberman have an important role in reaching these voters. Other opposition figures have similarly stressed that the bloc needs to expand beyond its existing electoral base rather than simply redistribute mandates among its constituent parties.
The issue has become particularly significant following the emergence of Ofer Winter’s “People of Israel” party, which is competing for right-wing voters who are dissatisfied with the established political parties.
Previous Agreements Provide a Framework for Cooperation
The latest meeting builds on earlier efforts to institutionalize cooperation among the opposition parties.
In September, the four major opposition parties signed surplus-vote agreements intended to reduce the number of votes effectively lost between allied parties and maximize the bloc’s parliamentary representation.
Those agreements paired Yashar with the Democrats and Bennett-Lapid’s Together with Yisrael Beiteinu.
The new discussions go further, focusing on campaign coordination, voter turnout, election-day organization and potentially common principles for a future government.
Major Differences Remain
Despite the new agreement, significant disagreements have not disappeared.
One of the most sensitive issues concerns the composition of a future coalition. Eisenkot has said he does not currently see Arab or ultra-Orthodox parties as partners in a government under his leadership, while other opposition figures have taken different positions.
Questions surrounding military service, relations between secular and religious Israelis, economic policy and the structure of the next government could therefore become major sources of tension after the election.
The Democrats’ Yair Golan has also emphasized the need for election-day coordination and for preparations for the period immediately following the vote.
Benny Gantz Challenges the Bloc
Benny Gantz, whose party is struggling to pass the electoral threshold according to current polling, was not invited to the meeting.
Instead, Gantz staged a protest outside Lapid’s residence, with a truck displaying the slogan: “The Blocs Are Blocking Israel.”
His absence illustrates another unresolved question facing the opposition: whether additional political forces can enter the bloc without further fragmenting the anti-Netanyahu vote.
A Strategic Truce — Not Yet a Political Alliance
The meeting marks an important change in tone among the opposition parties, but it does not eliminate their fundamental competition.
The leaders have effectively agreed on a temporary formula: campaign separately, coordinate where possible, maximize the overall bloc — and postpone the battle over the premiership until the voters have spoken.
The four major opposition parties had already established formal electoral cooperation through surplus-vote agreements, while the latest meeting seeks to translate that cooperation into a broader campaign strategy.
With the election scheduled for October 27, the coming weeks will test whether the new arrangement can turn a fragile ceasefire between rival political leaders into sustained electoral coordination.
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