In the anti-Netanyahu camp, Yesh Atid MK Yoav Segalovitz resigned from the Knesset, amid reports that he is set to join the Arab Ra\u2019am party in a political shakeup.<\/p>\n
Gafni: I might not endorse Netanyahu this time<\/p>\n
And on Sunday, Haredi lawmaker Moshe Gafni, a longtime Netanyahu ally, claimed that he may not support the premier following the election. He leads the Degel HaTorah faction, part of the Haredi United Torah Judaism party, which has been a close ally of Netanyahu in successive governments but has fought with him over legislation that would exempt Haredi men from military enlistment.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis time, I won\u2019t say ahead of time that I\u2019m going with Netanyahu,\u201d Gafni said, according to Hebrew media reports.<\/p>\n
\t Netanyahu\u2019s coalition advanced legislation to enshrine blanket exemptions from conscription for yeshiva students, but UTJ lawmakers accused the prime minister of slow-walking the measure. But then, near the end of the most recent Knesset session, Netanyahu\u2019s coalition passed a raft of laws meant to favor Haredim, many of which were unpopular with voters.<\/p>\n Since then, both Netanyahu and the Haredi parties have tried to create daylight between them, allegedly so that they don\u2019t appear beholden to each other. Former prime minister Naftali Bennett, who heads the anti-Netanyahu B\u2019Yachad party, said that was what lay behind Gafni\u2019s words.<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t get confused: Gafni, Bibi and Deri are the same,\u201d Bennett posted on X, referring to Netanyahu ally Aryeh Deri, chair of the Haredi Shas party. \u201cWhoever really wants to draft Haredim and help IDF soldiers knows that he must leave the fomenters of draft-dodging, Deri and Gafni, out of the government.\u201d<\/p>\n Kan poll: Pro-Netanyahu bloc at 53, opposition at 56<\/p>\n The Kan poll showed Likud leading with 24 seats, while Yashar, led by his top rival Gadi Eisenkot, would win 23.<\/p>\n Next in line were three anti-Netanyahu parties: the centrist B\u2019Yachad with 13, the left-wing Democrats with 10 and the hawkish Yisrael Beytenu with 10. After that were three pro-Netanyahu parties with eight seats each: the far-right Otzma Yehudit, and the Haredi Shas and United Torah Judaism parties. The pro-Netanyahu far-right Religious Zionism party would win five seats.<\/p>\n Among Arab parties, Ra\u2019am would win six, while Hadash-Ta\u2019al would win five and Balad would fall short of gaining any seats.<\/p>\n \t Overall, the poll showed the anti-Netanyahu bloc with 56 seats, the pro-Netanyahu parties with 53, and the Arab parties with 11, all short of a 61-seat majority in the 120-seat Knesset.<\/p>\n Segalovitz resigns from Knesset; next moves unclear<\/p>\n That calculus could change, however, if Segalovitz joins Ra\u2019am, which might make the party more palatable to the anti-Netanyahu bloc and allow it to join a coalition to unseat the premier.<\/p>\n Ra\u2019am is a historically Islamist party that joined a 2021 government that briefly unseated Netanyahu. This time, however, some anti-Netanyahu parties have pledged not to join with Arab parties to form a coalition. Against that backdrop, Ra\u2019am has announced its intention to depart from its religious roots and become a civic-oriented party.<\/p>\n Recent reports have indicated that Segalovitz is set to join the party. On Sunday, he submitted his resignation letter to Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, three days after announcing that he was leaving Opposition Leader Yair Lapid\u2019s centrist Yesh Atid party.<\/p>\n In a statement, Ohana\u2019s spokesman said that according to the Yesh Atid list, Segalovitz is slated to be replaced in the Knesset by Michal Slawny Cababia. Cababia is an American immigrant who has headed the Yesh Atid English speakers\u2019 branch.<\/p>\n \t Segalovitz informed fellow Yesh Atid members on Thursday that he was leaving the party, amid the reported talks about joining Ra\u2019am. Segalovitz, a former deputy internal security minister, has yet to confirm that he intends to join Ra\u2019am, but he also hasn\u2019t denied considering the unprecedented move.<\/p>\n Likud, Erdan trade barbs<\/p>\n Also on Sunday, Likud said former party stalwarts Edelstein and Erdan are \u201cembittered fake right-wingers\u201d who will help the prime minister\u2019s opponents gain power.<\/p>\n Erdan and Edelstein\u2019s breakaway party is meant to capture Likud voters dissatisfied with the direction the party has gone under Netanyahu. They have vowed to push against ultra-Orthodox draft exemptions and seek to be part of a broad consensus government.<\/p>\n In its first official reaction to the unnamed party\u2019s rollout, Likud charged that Edelstein and Erdan \u201care working to steal votes and transfer them to the fraudulent government of the left bloc headed by Eisenkot with [Democrats leader] Yair Golan and the Muslim Brotherhood.\u201d<\/p>\n In response, Erdan released a statement attacking Likud for being the one stealing right-wing votes.<\/p>\n \u201cThose stealing the votes of right-wing voters are the ones who perpetuate draft evasion and abandon the families of soldiers and service members,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism<\/strong> produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform \u2014 from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.<\/p>\n This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant<\/strong> on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible<\/strong> short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.\u00a0<\/p>\n If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism<\/b>, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. <\/b>Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.<\/p>\n \u2014 Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist<\/strong><\/p>\n \t\t\t
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/image-640x400.png\")
<\/a>
\n\t\tNaftali Bennett speaking at the\u00a0 Gaza border town of Netiv Ha\u2019asara, August 4, 2026. (Courtesy Together party)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/F260727AVS617-e1785358152317-640x400.jpg\")
<\/a>
\n\t\tYashar party chairman Gadi Eisenkot, at a campaign conference of at the Darom HaSharon Regional Council building in central Israel, July 27, 2026. (Avshalom Sassoni\/Flash90)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/F260806AVS309-640x400.jpg\")
<\/a>
\n\t\tLikud MK Yuli Edelstein at a press conference in Tel Aviv to announce the establishment of a new right-wing party with Gilad Erdan, August 6, 2026. (Avshalom Sassoni\/Flash90)<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tHelp us report truthfully on social media\t\t\t<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/gabriella-200.png\" "\\"\\"\/")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tSupport our work\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/334x334-200x200.png\" "\\"\\"\/")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n