The intention of members of the Labor party to support the petitions to bar the candidacy of Knesset member Heba Yazbak (Balad faction of the Arab Joint List) for the election to the 23rd Knesset attest more than anything to their wish to remain distinct from Meretz, their partner in the united list of the Israeli left, whose members tend to oppose barring her from running.
Balad, the national Arab party, is considered the most extreme of the four Arab parties making up the Joint List. After the election in September 2019, when the Joint List announced that it would recommend to the president to charge Blue and White leader Benny Gantz with forming the government, the three representatives from Balad in the Joint List refused to endorse the recommendation.
