How Do We Win the Elections?

By Aral Morris

The deal to release one hundred hostages that Trump “achieved” at the beginning of his term was given to him as a gift by his friend, the Prime Minister of Israel. Throughout the war, he consistently refused to conclude a deal that could otherwise have been credited to Biden and Kamala Harris. Everything was timed in preparation for the elections in the United States, with the main goal being that American Muslims and Jews would continue to feel frustrated by Biden’s failure and vote for Trump, the ally of the populists. This was Netanyahu’s “dowry,” which has earned him Trump’s support to this day.

Now we are stuck with Netanyahu and with Trump, and with their inflated sense of self-importance, which does not always align with them, with us, or with the world. For Trump to refrain from supporting Netanyahu in the Israeli elections in the same way, he must understand in advance that Netanyahu is on his way to defeat. Trump hates losers and hates losing. Cooperation between Bennett and Lieberman with the Arabs is a necessary condition for victory. Arab support for the opposition in the wake of the war, the demolition of homes, and the abandonment of the fight against crime is certain. In return, they are entitled to respectful treatment as law-abiding citizens and voters, and to full legitimacy as worthy partners in a coalition.

The Israeli public finds it difficult to accept a government that depends on Arabs and on Arab–Jewish partnership parties. In the first stage, we will need to agree to support the candidate chosen by the opposition for prime minister, even from outside the government. In the second stage, when the ultra-Orthodox parties are also offered entry into the government as partners, as well as Likud and the parties of Jewish supremacy, we too—the Arab–Jewish partnership parties—will be invited to join the government. This time, it will be perceived by the wider public as a legitimate move, not as holding the balance of power.

In the meantime, it is necessary to strengthen the alliance with the Arab parties, reinforce the Arab–Jewish bloc, and build an airtight bloc that guarantees Netanyahu’s defeat already now, and decisively, in a way that will also be clear to Trump. The opposition parties bear the responsibility to unequivocally denounce the racism, incitement, intimidation, and delegitimization that will be fed to us in the next elections—by the ladleful.