Netanyahu rivals bet everything on Blue and White
The brand-new alliance between Israel Resilience head Benny Gantz and Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid has shaken up Israeli politics just ahead of the April elections.
The merger of Israel Resilience and Yesh Atid into one slate ahead of the next elections had immediate and dramatic effects. The Blue and White party, born after a very brief gestation Feb. 21 at the home of businessman Hillel Kobrinsky, has made the biggest bang in Israeli politics since the late Ariel Sharon formed Kadima in 2005.
Within hours, the polls showed the new platform as Israel’s biggest party, overtaking the ruling Likud and dealing a blow to the barely recuperating Labor and to Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon's Kulanu, which is at risk of electoral oblivion.
In the morning hours of Feb. 21, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was still heading with confidence for a fifth term as prime minister. By evening, he found himself in a tight spot. Blue and White had reshuffled all the cards. Everything was up for grabs.
The surprising decision for a joint run by Israel Resilience chair Benny Gantz and Yesh Atid's Yair Lapid will be tested on April 9 at the ballot box. There will be no middle ground. Once the votes are counted, the partnership will either be a historic transformation of Israeli politics or a colossal flop. If they do not unseat Netanyahu, Blue and White will be nothing more than a footnote.
