Justice Minister Gideon Sa'ar, head of the New Hope party which he founded after breaking off from Likud, has clarified that he does not intend to join up with the Blue & White party for a joint run in the next elections, which are likely to be held in early November.
Blue & White leader Defense Minister Benny Gantz allegedly made the offer to Sa'ar at the end of last week, according to a report in Ulpan Shishi.
"New Hope will contest the next elections under my leadership," Sa'ar told Kan Bet. "I am confident in our success."
Answering his interviewer's question regarding recent polls which show his party barely scraping over the electoral threshold of four seats, or failing to cross it entirely, Sa'ar said, "In all the polls conducted in the last week, we pass the threshold. I suggest not getting too excited about polls; I'm confident in our ability to succeed. We have shown ourselves to be a party that keeps its promises and a party that has demonstrated its ability to deliver, something that polls have confirmed - surveys show that voters see us as the party that has best demonstrated its commitment to its positions."
With regard to the option of establishing an alternative government within the current Knesset and avoiding the necessity of elections, Sa'ar ruled out sitting under opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu.
"During the run-up to the previous elections, we said that the country needs new leadership, and I don't think that the various options for an alternative government are viable, given that time after time the parties concerned failed to secure a majority. If they had been open to changes [in the man at the helm] then perhaps we would have seen different results."
Sa'ar also stressed his intention to do his best to ensure that the so-called Indictment Law passes, legislation that would bar someone under criminal indictment from serving as prime minister.
"I and New Hope support this bill and will vote in favor in the Ministerial Legislative Committee," he said. "It was the Yamina party that was opposed to this law throughout the entire past year; they haven't only just recently changed their position. Without their opposition, we would have been able to pass the law, as all other coalition parties support it."