Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's appointments of Rabbi Rafi Peretz and MK Bezalel Smotrich to head the education and transportation ministries respectively, effectively kick-start the process of his return to the religious-Zionist fold. After firing Naftali Bennett and Ayelet Shaked from the government, and firing Kobi Eliraz, the Defense Ministry's secretary of settlement affairs, Netanyahu has been accused of intentionally severing ties with and affronting the religious-Zionist camp. Monday's appointments were intended to signal this was a mistaken interpretation of recent events, and that the alliance between the religious-Zionist camp and Likud is stronger than ever.
This appears to be the first time a prime minister has desired a move of this sort more than the appointees themselves. First calling for an early election and then forcing the political system to again prepare for a do-over in two months has raised tensions within the victorious camp. This is mainly due to the fact that the numerous splits within the camp, prior to the last election, ultimately made it impossible to form a coalition because of one defection.
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Four years ago, the right-wing camp consisted of 61 mandates without Avigdor Lieberman's Yisrael Beytenu party. This time, primarily due to the establishment of the New Right and Zehut parties, it came away with just 60. The mutual accusations and mudslinging, which began immediately upon the Knesset's dissolution, created the sense that unity was no longer feasible and that votes were again in danger of being squandered. However, the appointments Monday were a message that Netanyahu doesn't intend to sit idly by.
This time, his involvement in fostering agreement between the various right-wing parties to the right of Likud will be more pronounced and resolute, to the extent he sees the sides aren't capable of doing it themselves. Netanyahu, it appears, won't let any potential threat – in other words, a party falling below the electoral threshold – go unresolved.
Netanyahu is determined to establish a right-wing government after the election, one that will help him traverse the legal battles awaiting him around the corner; whether through new or existing immunity legislation or by coalition partners promising to remain in the government as he wages a defense in court. This time, however, he will begin the task of forming a government from a position of minus – as he can no longer count Yisrael Beytenu's mandates if it gets them.
The concern within Likud is that despite its plan to intensively target Russian-speaking Israelis, and despite assessments that Lieberman could grow stronger as a result of center-left voters who may shift in his direction, Lieberman could still receive two to four mandates provided by right-wing voters who support him in spite of everything. In light of the power balance between the blocs, this could be critical the day after the election.
