MK Yoav Segalovitz is joining Ra’am (United Arab List) for the upcoming election after leaving Yesh Atid, Ra’am chairman Mansour Abbas said Monday. He will be the first Jewish candidate for the Islamist-conservative political party.
Segalovitz is expected to receive the second slot on the party’s slate, according to reports.
“We have work to do together,” Abbas said at a joint press conference with Segalovitz.
Segalovitz said the country could not bring about political change “without connection, including political connection.”
“I explicitly want to break the paradigm of dividing lines and lines of discourse,” he said. “I also want to break the paradigm of how political partnerships are formed. I am personally joining Ra’am. Some will say that this represents political weakness, but from my perspective, there is much greater strength and power in this.”
“The common assertion that after [the] October 7 [massacre] it is impossible to have a political partnership with Arab parties is absurd and false,” he added.
Segalovitz recently announced Knesset resignation
Segalovitz recently announced his resignation from the Knesset and departure from Yesh Atid, whose chairman is opposition leader Yair Lapid.
The addition of a Jewish candidate to the Arab party’s list has been widely seen as a way for Ra’am to be viewed as a more viable coalition partner.
In 2021, Ra’am joined the coalition during the Bennett-Lapid government, marking the first time an Arab party was a formal member of a governing coalition. The move to include Ra’am in the coalition was highly criticized.
Although Ra’am seeks to be part of the coalition again, most opposition parties in the bloc seeking to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have rejected the possibility of forming a government with any of the Arab parties. Most of them have said a coalition with the Arab parties would not be viable after the October 7 massacre.
Segalovitz was a former head of Lahav 433 – The National Crime Unit. Under the Bennett-Lapid government, he worked on combating violence and crime in Arab society.
There had been reports that Segalovitz would soon join Ra’am ahead of the election in October.
The other three major Arab parties – Hadash, Ta’al, and Balad – have agreed to run on a unified list and are leaving the door open for Ra’am to join ahead of next week’s deadline for parties to submit their lists.
Despite polls showing that the Arab parties would earn more seats together, Abbas has declined to join the Arab alliance.
His decision not to join the Joint List has been widely viewed as a strategic move aimed at keeping Ra’am in contention for a place in the next coalition.
Coalition party leaders have accused the opposition bloc of seeking to form a government with the Arab parties, sharply criticizing Yashar Party chairman Gadi Eisenkot.
Likud MKs denounce Segalovitz joining Ra'am list
In response to Segalovitz’s announcement, Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana (Likud) said the move was “intended to achieve one thing: to legitimize the inclusion of an Islamist list in an Eisenkot government, whose members are unable to say, ‘Hamas is a terrorist organization.’”
The Democrats MK Gilad Kariv praised the announcement, saying it was “bringing good news to the citizens of Israel, both Jews and Arabs.”
“We will do everything we can to bring about change and a new direction, and we will work together to ensure personal security, equality, prosperity, and hope for all Israeli citizens,” he said.
The Democrats chairman Yair Golan is the only party leader in the opposition bloc who has openly called for forming a government with the Arab parties.