Labor announces it will not make last minute alliance with Meretz

The Labor party announces that it will not form an alliance with the left-wing Meretz party for the upcoming Knesset elections after saying earlier today that it would consider the idea.

“After a thorough examination of by the Labor Party today, we saw that a merger between Labor and Meretz would be smaller than the sum of its parts. A combination of the two movements does not increase our strength, on the contrary, it weakens the bloc,” a statement from the party says.

Citing polling that showed both parties would pass the electoral threshold on their own, Labor says, “We will run separately and help one another in order to bring about a change of government.”