Likud’s Edelstein makes progress with Ayelet Shaked on new right-wing political alliance – report

Former UN ambassador and ex-Likud minister Gilad Erdan is no longer the only right-wing figure in talks with Likud MK Yuli Edelstein about a potential new political alliance, as Edelstein has also made recent progress in discussions with former cabinet minister Ayelet Shaked, Channel 12 reports.

Erdan, Edelstein, and Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel have all been mentioned in recent months in reports about the possible formation of a new party dubbed “Likud B,” aimed at creating a more “statesmanlike” alternative to the ruling party, which would eschew some of the extreme populist elements of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s current party and cater to right-wing voters who assign blame to the premier for the failures that enabled Hamas’s onslaught of October 7, 2023.

Channel 12 says Erdan is simultaneously continuing efforts to establish a separate joint list focused primarily on promoting equality in military service.

According to the report, a group of prominent religious Zionist rabbis is also attempting to broker the formation of a new party aimed at religious Zionist voters who feel they currently lack a political home. The emerging party would reportedly oppose relying on Arab parties to form a government and support advancing legislation to address military burden-sharing.

Channel 12 adds that broader efforts to unite parties in the political center-right remain hampered by disagreements over leadership, candidate placements and post-election coalition strategy, including whether to join a government led by Netanyahu or one that includes ultra-Orthodox parties.