Fresh off his announcement of a joint run with Yair Lapid – a move that has jolted Israel's political landscape and drawn sharp criticism, particularly from the right – former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett sat down for a wide-ranging interview in Herzliya. Against the backdrop of polls placing him at the top of the opposition and occasionally as the head of the largest party, he defended the unconventional alliance, dismissed accusations that he had abandoned his political base, and addressed the most volatile issues on the agenda – from judicial reform to the conduct of the war and the hostage question.
From HaBayit HaYehudi (the Jewish Home party, a national-religious party), through Yamina (a right-wing alliance he led), and now the new partnership with Lapid, Bennett was pressed on whether the move signals a fundamental shift in his political base, and why he had until now refrained from clearly stating his positions on the key issues before the public.
Bennett arrived at the interview in Herzliya prepared. He appeared relatively relaxed for someone who had just made an unconventional political move. We dove straight in.
Q: Your alliance with Lapid is not natural, and it gives the impression that you've somewhat abandoned your natural base.
Bennett rejected the charge. "Exactly the opposite. To win this election, the camp of those who serve in the military cannot be divided, quarrelsome, and fractured. We need to unite forces. I am not giving up on anyone. I am reaching out to coalition voters – I am your home. The Netanyahu-Deri-Smotrich coalition is producing mass draft evasion. That is not right. The real right is me."
He sharpened his criticism of the right wing in the current government through the lens of the Negev region: "The government has lost the Negev, hasn't it? The Negev has become Palestine, in case anyone hasn't noticed. Hamas has taken over the Negev. Is that right? What is right-wing about that?"
The reform, the hostages, and the political line
Q: What is your position on the judicial reform?
Bennett presented a shift in his position on the need for a constitution. "I support passing a constitution for Israel based on the compromise reached under Herzog. In the past, I didn't think a constitution was necessary. The past few years have taught me that very clear foundations are needed. How do you legislate a Basic Law? How do you repeal a regular law? By what majority?"
Q: Will Ayelet Shaked be part of the government you form?
"I am not addressing any name on a list we have not yet published."
Q: Would you have handled the hostage deal the way the government did?
Bennett was careful not to directly attack the government. "This involves managing a war, managing negotiations – it's a complicated matter. I have not attacked the government on this. I believed we needed to defeat Hamas, and I proposed a plan as well."
On his siege plan, he revealed, "I proposed the siege plan quietly to two cabinet ministers. I won't name them – they know who they are."
Q: From Likud?
"I won't say who, but I pushed for it. I saw my country in great distress. They told me, 'Naftali, you're right, this needs to be raised.'"
Alliances, polls, and the day after the election
Q: If you see that you need to ease off the gas because Eisenkot or Lieberman are overtaking you, would you do what Lapid did and say, 'OK, I'll take a step back'?
Bennett tried to steer the conversation away from any single poll. "Let's put things in order. I'm not focused on this poll or that poll. I'm looking at the macro picture – how do we win? How do we win? The Israeli public wants two things. It wants enormous change in the State of Israel – and even voters who supported the coalition want the country in trustworthy hands."
In his view, the key is a broad alignment under his leadership. "The only way to win is a coalition – or rather, a very strong bloc along the lines of the Fidesz model in Hungary, led by me. That's what will bring victory."
He then turned the pressure on Gadi Eisenkot. "Lapid made a leadership decision. I made a leadership decision. Now it's Gadi's turn to make a leadership decision."
Bennett noted that Eisenkot had himself spoken of a three-way merger. "He declared he wants a triple merger. We are offering him a triple merger. Lapid set his ego aside and said he was willing to go in third place. Now it's Gadi's turn – let him come."
Q: Did you speak with Gadi after this announcement?
"Yes."
Q: And how was that conversation?
"I don't describe internal conversations."
Q: Let's say we're after the election, and you don't have 61 seats, but you're closer to 61 than Netanyahu, and what separates you from that number are the Haredi parties – is there a chance you'd bring them in?
Bennett responded briefly. "I set the parameters. I'll also invite Likud in – but on my terms."
Q: With Netanyahu?
Here, he spelled out his conditions. "I'll tell you what the terms are: a Zionist party; support for repealing the draft-evasion law [legislation that exempts ultra-Orthodox men from mandatory military service]; a full halt to the funds flowing to draft evaders and those who don't go to work, and returning that money to the population that serves and works."
He also demanded institutional changes. "Establishing a state commission of inquiry on the first day in office, and setting a prime ministerial term limit of eight years. Whoever accepts these terms is welcome."
The ultra-Orthodox, lessons of the past, and the path forward
Q: The ultra-Orthodox issue is far more complicated than stopping funding – you know that.
Bennett described the issue as a matter of incentive structures. "People respond to incentives. That's how it works. Right now, the entire incentive structure is built to punish a young Haredi man who chooses to enlist. I'm telling you – this is something that has never been tried."
For him, the solution begins with cutting the funding. "A very simple thing: stop paying draft-evading Haredim. There are currently around 50 channels funneling money to them. I fully understand the question, but it's entirely possible. You'll see – it will happen. Exactly like that."
He paired this with changes to the education and training system. "Alongside building excellent state Haredi schools that teach math and English, which educate in favor of military service. Alongside tech training tracks. I know how to do this – I'm a tech entrepreneur myself. We'll do it. It will happen."
Q: When you were the education minister, the state Haredi schools didn't move forward all the way. There were claims against you on that.
Bennett accepted the criticism. "True. And actually, in many things – truly until October 7 – I think we all failed to see the urgency in this matter. I think October 7 taught everyone that you can't keep putting things off. You have to grab the bull by the horns."
On a second term as prime minister, he framed it as an advantage of experience. "You're asking about drawing lessons from the past. I'm coming now to serve as prime minister for a second time. I bring a great deal of experience, including lessons learned. Ben Gurion came back for a second term more mature. Rabin came back more mature; Netanyahu came back more mature. And I believe that is a great gift to the public – a prime minister who arrives ready."
Bennett added that he had prepared in advance. "And I'll reveal something else. Over the past year and a half, I've prepared plans – plans for rebuilding Israel, for sweeping reforms across every sector. So from the moment the government is formed, we hit the ground running."
Q: How do you plan to bring in the Religious Zionist community? That's a constituency that could decide the election.
Bennett acknowledged the anger toward him within Religious Zionism (Israel's national-religious political movement). "You're right. There is anger toward me in parts of Religious Zionism. I can accept that. I don't have some magic formula."
His appeal to that community rested on deeds, not words. "What I do is address the public from here, specifically to Religious Zionism and also to the secular right. Judge me by my actions. Not by words – by my actions."
He framed his closing message around unity. "In my country, there will be no citizen who feels that I hate him, that he is unwanted. I will not divide the country into left and right, 'Lapidists' and 'Bibi-ists.' No. They are fighting together in Gaza. We will fix the country together."
