Skip to main content

Arab Israelis alienated by both top candidates as vote approaches

As the two leading candidates for the Israeli premiership reject the idea of a coalition with Arab parties, it’s no wonder that Arab citizens are not planning to vote.
RTR4TPNP.jpg
Read in 

Not even the most optimistic of polls give the Blue and White Party any hope of forming a relatively stable government after the April 9 elections without the support of the two Arab parties running, Ra’am-Balad and Hadash-Ta’al.

However, neither one may get sufficient votes to enable the formation of a center-left bloc large enough to unseat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Ra’am-Balad may not attract enough votes to get into the Knesset at all. Labor and left-wing Meretz are not doing well among Arab voters, while Blue and White leader Benny Gantz has declared on more than one occasion that Arab parties would not be welcome in his government. In a Feb. 8 interview with Yedioth Ahronoth, Gantz said he will consider partnership with any Zionist, a clear reference to the Arab parties not known to share the Zionist dream. In a March 19 interview on Channel 11, Gantz explicitly ruled out any political dialogue with Arab representatives.

Access the Middle East news and analysis you can trust

Join our community of Middle East readers to experience all of Al-Monitor, including 24/7 news, analyses, memos, reports and newsletters.

Subscribe

Only $100 per year.