Labor Party recalculates strategy ahead of Israeli elections

Paradoxically, it was the new Blue and White party of Benny Gantz and Yair Lapid that pushed the Labor Party back to its traditional positions on diplomatic affairs.

It happened almost immediately after the big political explosion caused by the founding of the new party Feb. 21. This merger of center-left parties was the worst possible news that Labor Party Chairman Avi Gabbay could have asked for. And it happened just one day after the announcement that Maj. Gen. Tal Russo had joined Gabbay's party and taken the No. 2 slot on its list.

Even before the creation of the rival Blue and White party, the Labor Party’s campaign was foundering. It had single digits in the polls when Gabbay launched his campaign for prime minister. Then Gantz entered the fray with a successful launch that drove voters to him. For Gabbay, the future was already bleak. Then the merger of Gantz’ Israel Resilience party and Lapid’s Yesh Atid was nothing less than a death stroke for Labor. With voters seeing a real opportunity to take down Netanyahu, they rallied around the platform headed by Gantz and Lapid. As the two remaining parties on the left, Labor and Meretz would end up paying the price.

In 2009, Meretz came very close to being kept out of the Knesset by the vote threshold. Its supporters switched allegiance to Tzipi Livni, who was then head of Kadima, believing that this would help her get elected prime minister. This is the exact same situation that the Labor Party is facing today. So, having no choice, Labor switched campaigns yet again. Now Gabbay as party chairman will have to navigate his party through stormy waters in an effort to bring back voters who fled Labor for the Blue and White party, while preventing even more voters from abandoning ship. At the same time, he cannot attack Gantz to his face, since that will make it seem like he is trying to sabotage a potential attempt to bring down Netanyahu, the one thing Labor Party supporters want most of all.