Likud and Religious Zionism sign surplus-vote agreement

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling Likud says it signed a surplus-vote agreement with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s far-right Religious Zionism party, drawing outrage from National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s far-right Otzma Yehudit.

“Likud refused to sign a surplus-vote agreement with Otzma Yehudit, as part of Likud’s attempt to weaken Otzma Yehudit and keep Ben Gvir out of the unity government that Likud is planning with Eisenkot,” the party says.

Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party responds to the news, saying, “We don’t interfere with how the draft-dodgers’ bloc divides up its votes.” Yashar and Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beytenu party separately criticize Likud and Religious Zionism for finding time to sign the agreement while remaining silent “when draft dodgers attack police officers and Rabbi Lando incites against members of the Religious Zionist community.”

Surplus-vote agreements do not merge parties, which run independently and must each cross the 3.25% electoral threshold for the deal to take effect, but pool leftover votes in the allocation of the Knesset’s final seats, potentially helping one gain an additional mandate.

Likud and Religious Zionism are currently polling comfortably above the threshold, at roughly 21 and six seats respectively, with Likud slightly trailing Yashar.

Separately, Channel 12 reports that Yoaz Hendel’s Reservists party has offered Ofer Winter’s People of Israel a surplus-vote agreement but has yet to receive a response. Such a deal would be of no benefit if either party fails to cross the threshold, with recent polls putting Winter below it and Hendel hovering around the cutoff.

Parties have until October 16 to submit any surplus agreements. Yashar and Yair Golan’s Democrats have already signed one, as have Naftali Bennett’s B’Yachad and Liberman’s Yisrael Beytenu.