đ° Defense funding: support for reinforcement, disagreement over financing: According to former Prime Minister Yair Lapidâs office, Netanyahu proposed reopening the budget law to increase defense funding during a security briefing attended by the heads of the IDF Planning Directorate and National Security Council.
Lapid supported strengthening the IDF but rejected higher taxes on the middle class and reservists, accusing the government of heading in that direction. He offered Knesset support if the proposal instead canceled what he called corrupt coalition funds and tens of billions of shekels he accused the government of using to fund ultra-Orthodox draft evasion.
đłď¸ Electoral cooperation and unresolved coalition arithmetic: According to Walla, agreements announced September 10 paired Naftali Bennettâs Beyachad with Avigdor Liebermanâs Yisrael Beiteinu, and Gadi Eisenkotâs Yashar! with Yair Golanâs Democrats. Yashar! said the arrangements applied lessons from previous elections to maximize the campâs representation and replace Netanyahuâs government. Raâam and the Joint List signed their own agreement September 11, also pledging a fair campaign without personal attacks or incitement.
Surplus-vote agreements can improve paired partiesâ chances of securing additional seats, but both must independently cross the electoral threshold, according to the Israel Democracy Institute. They cannot rescue votes for a party below the threshold and do not settle which parties would govern together.
A September 13 Globes polling average placed Likud and Yashar! at 23 seats each, with Netanyahuâs camp, including Ofer Winter, at 56, the non-Arab opposition at 52 and Arab parties at 12. Individual surveys put Netanyahuâs camp at 50 in Maariv, 52â53 in Channels 11, 12 and 13, 60 in i24NEWS and 64 in Channel 14. The range does not support a blanket claim that every poll predicts deadlock.
In his September 11 column, Amit Segal examined Chili Tropperâs move into Eisenkotâs list against Tropperâs campâs previous opposition to a minority government enabled by Arab-party abstentions. Segal discussed widening a coalition through Likud or right-wing parties, with a temporary minority government as a possible fallback. He identified Bennettâs and Liebermanâs stated opposition as a central obstacle. These were analytical scenarios, not an agreed coalition arrangement.
đď¸ Likudâs disqualification initiative and pressure on Eisenkot: Likud announced plans to petition against the Joint List and Raâam running in the elections, accusing them of harming IDF soldiers, supporting terrorism and being unable to identify Hamas and Hezbollah as terrorist organizations. It called them Eisenkotâs natural coalition partners, alleging that he seeks a government with them, Golan and Lieberman. Accompanying political commentary described the initiative as also intended to embarrass Eisenkot, Bennett and Lieberman.
Separately, Srugim reported that Likud called on Eisenkot on Monday to cancel Yashar!âs surplus-vote agreement with the Democrats over candidatesâ comments concerning the documentary âNaza.â Those comments defended public debate and opposed attacks on the filmmakers; candidate Moshe Radman explicitly said he did not know whether the film was fair or accurate.
Earlier Monday, Eisenkot accused the filmmakers of presenting a distorted, one-sided account and damaging IDF soldiersâ reputation. His criticism addressed the film and did not announce cancellation of the agreement.
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