Eisenkot must beat Netanyahu at his own game, not repeat Gantz's mistakes - opinion

Gadi Eisenkot must outmaneuver Benjamin Netanyahu, not simply mirror Gantz's strategy. He must counter Netanyahu's tactics and not adopt his methods. He should not become Netanyahu. In other words, he must not replicate Benny Gantz's blunders during their troubled partnership. Eisenkot needs to assert dominance, play hardball, and achieve tangible gains.

He requires Avigdor Liberman, Naftali Bennett, and Yair Lapid to achieve this. It is incomprehensible they have not united yet; if they fail to do so, they are disrespecting their supporters. To those who cherish their nation and wish to safeguard it from opportunistic, messianic, Bibi-adoring, post-Zionist coalition, I urge: Maintain your spirits.

Many of you have succumbed to despair, and the familiar refrain resurfaces: "We must seek refuge elsewhere because we cannot endure life here." Let us examine the election results. It is inaccurate to claim no progress was made. We achieved significant milestones. The evidence lies in the jihadist campaign spearheaded by Netanyahu and his allies, attempting to invalidate the election results.

If Netanyahu triumphed, why would he seek to invalidate the election? If the outcome was favorable, why is he fighting it? He did not win. Neither did we, but the opposition bloc garnered roughly a quarter of a million more votes than in the previous election, accounting for natural population growth. Netanyahu's bloc received 72,000 fewer votes than in the previous election.

The coalition shrank from 68 seats in the previous Knesset to 53 in the current one. It is no wonder the coalition seeks to invalidate the incoming Knesset. True, the opposition bloc did not secure the 61 seats necessary for a majority and failed to surpass Netanyahu's bloc. Nevertheless, it is crucial to acknowledge that Netanyahu's bloc includes a post-Zionist faction: Among the 13 seats held by ultra-Orthodox parties in the upcoming Knesset, at least 10 are non-Zionist.

Consequently, the opposition bloc possesses a Zionist majority—an indisputable fact. Denying this fact is futile, but it must be recognized. What could have been done differently? Everything. Numerous decisive moments influenced the outcome, and parties opted for divergent paths. Could they have chosen a different course and secured victory?

We will never know. For instance, on the eve of the electoral list submission deadline, Eisenkot and Bennett deliberated the possibility of joining forces. The Bennett-Eisenkot merger, which never materialized, was discussed in two intense meetings, attended by key members of their teams. Polling data was presented, and Bennett advocated for the merger, demanding to be second on the list, finance minister, and responsible for artificial intelligence.

His demands were reasonable. Eisenkot contemplated the proposal, evaluated it, and declined. Polls presented at the meetings indicated a potential merger list with 27 or even 28 seats for Eisenkot. Ultimately, the merger did not occur, nor did the anticipated 28 seats. Was Eisenkot's stall due to his comments about a minority government?

We will never know. Was the lack of a merger with Bennett the reason for the loss? We will never know that either. Polls at the time predicted 31 or 32 seats for a joint list. In the election, they ran separately and secured 33 seats combined—without considering the detrimental impact of a united party. The fatal error of the Bennett-Lapid merger was another critical juncture.

There can be no debate that this was a catastrophic decision driven by panic. Once the merger occurred, Bezalel Smotrich surpassed the electoral threshold, eliminating Bennett's ability to attack Netanyahu from the right. My previous argument advocating for adopting the Hungarian model and uniting the opposition behind Bennett to defeat Netanyahu proved unfounded.

The right-wing candidate later shifted left. Nonetheless, Bennett's post-merger campaign was commendable. He rallied supporters in streets, town squares, and cafes, halting the decline and defying a seemingly predetermined fate. Despite falling short of expectations, he survived.