National Union Chairman Bezalel Smotrich has responded for the first time to the decision of the Jewish Home Party to unite with the Otzma Yehudit Party in the Knesset campaign, saying, "When it comes to the fate of the state, I will not take part at all costs in a [candidate] list with a doubt that it will pass the threshold [for entering the Knesset]."
The transportation minister added, "It is not too late to have a democratic process that will renew the faith of religious Zionism in the party." He concluded, "I'm not interested in a [guaranteed] place [on a list] or a [cabinet] job - I just demand to allow the public to get involved and elect their representatives. Only so will the trust in the list return."