Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that the new “People of Israel” party, headed by Ofer Winter, may harm the right-wing bloc in the upcoming elections, whether by wasting votes or pushing one of the camp’s parties below the threshold of decisiveness.
Netanyahu said, in an interview with Channel 14, that Winter’s party hardly attracts votes from the voters of Naftali Bennett or Avigdor Lieberman, but rather competes within the right-wing base itself, calling on Winter to meet with him quickly and coordinate to avoid weakening the bloc.
Winter responded by rejecting these warnings, stressing that his party is “part of the right-wing camp,” but that it does not work in the interest of anyone, considering that what threatens the camp is the performance of the current government.
Winter accused the government of failing to confront Hamas, allowing hundreds of aid trucks to enter Gaza, and not recruiting Haredim, calling for introducing new leaders who were not part of the October 7 failures.
Winter, a former general in the Israeli army, launched the “People of Israel” party on August 25, presenting it as a new right-wing force. Recent polls showed that the party may win seats in the Knesset, but it attracts part of the base for which other right-wing parties, especially “religious Zionism,” compete.
Despite the disagreement, Winter previously announced that he would support Netanyahu alone to head the government after the elections, stressing that he would remain within the right-wing camp.
