Former Beit Shemesh Mayor Aliza Bloch has joined the new political party established by former ministers Gilad Erdan and Yuli Edelstein, after holding talks with them in the past few weeks.
Last week, it was reported that Likud officials approached Bloch and offered her a reserved spot on the party's Knesset list, but she declined the proposal.
In an interview with Arutz Sheva - Israel National News several weeks ago, Bloch explained why she believes now is the right time to enter national politics.
"We are living through one of the most important and most difficult moments in the history of the State of Israel," she said. "After October 7, we must not return to the days when we were burning the streets fighting one another."
"I'm not abandoning Religious Zionism - quite the opposite," she stressed. "I'm continuing the very path on which I was raised. Religious Zionism has always seen itself as a bridge. That's how our rabbis and educators taught us - to see every Jew as part of the people of Israel. That is Religious Zionism's mission today: not to focus on itself, but to take on the mission of unity. The moment is too important, and we cannot afford to give up on anyone."
"We're so busy emphasizing our differences that we no longer have time to focus on what really matters-education, the north, Kiryat Shmona, healthcare, and the future of our children. These are issues on which there is broad agreement, but they've been pushed aside because they don't generate headlines.
"I'm not entering politics because it's convenient or because it's the right political timing. I'm entering because we're in a national emergency. There are moments when you can't remain in the stands. Every one of us has to say: 'Here I am.'"