Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday warned that supporting “small” right-wing parties in the upcoming general election on October 27 could contribute to the opposition coming to power.
In a video posted on social media, Netanyahu said, “This election will be decided by every vote.”
“Do not waste your votes on small parties that may fail to cross the electoral threshold required to enter the Knesset and could bring the left to power,” he added.
The upcoming election is considered critical to Netanyahu’s political future, amid opinion polls indicating that he could face difficulties forming the next government.
With the exception of the left-wing Democrats party, Israel’s opposition includes centrist and right-wing forces, although Netanyahu collectively describes them as “the left.”
Netanyahu Warns of a Repeat of 1992
Warning against a repeat of a previous scenario, Netanyahu referred to the 1992 election, when the right-wing Likud party, which he currently leads, competed against the left-wing Labor Party.
He said Labor, led by Yitzhak Rabin, won that election and subsequently signed the Oslo Accords with the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1993.
Netanyahu partly attributed the right’s defeat at the time to voters who supported small parties that failed to cross the electoral threshold.
He described what happened as a “mistake” and warned against repeating it in the upcoming election.
Netanyahu also referred to efforts by right-wing activists to establish small parties to contest the election, urging them not to form such parties, arguing that they would “waste right-wing votes.”
Netanyahu Warns of Opposition Gains
Netanyahu said the fragmentation of right-wing votes could increase the chances of opposition parties, including Yashar, led by Gadi Eisenkot; the Democrats, led by Yair Golan; Yisrael Beiteinu, led by Avigdor Lieberman; and the United Arab List, led by Mansour Abbas.
He said such a scenario “would bring them to power, where a fascist regime would be established here,” according to his remarks.
Netanyahu has headed the current government since late December 2022. The government is widely described as the most right-wing in Israel’s history.
According to an opinion poll published by Israel’s public broadcaster on Sunday evening, Netanyahu’s bloc would win 51 seats, while the Jewish opposition would secure 57 seats and Arab lawmakers 12 seats.
A government in Israel requires the support of at least 61 of the Knesset’s 120 members.
Most leaders of Israel’s Jewish opposition parties have said they oppose cooperating with Arab lawmakers to form an Israeli government.
Source: Anadolu Agency
