Can Israel's Arab citizens Join Together To Change Netanyahu's Government?

On December 19, 2025 DANA BEN-SHIMON reported for the Jerusalem Post that the increased talk about holding general elections in Israel in 2526, has awakened the country's Arab citizens, who seem particularly interested in the vote. Arab parties in Israel have already started preparing for what may come, organizing their political campaigns as competition heats up between them.

There is one big question: Will all four Arab parties unite and run together in a joint list in the next elections?

In recent days, discussions about the possibility of uniting the Arab parties took place, including a special conference held in Nazareth, which brought together the leaders of four parties. The meeting was marked by mutual accusations, highlighting deep disagreements. So far, efforts to form a single political list have reached a dead end.

"Most Arab citizens want the Arab parties to reunite into a joint list," said Mohammed Darawshe, a prominent Arab Israeli political analyst. "There is anger in the Arab street because the Arab politicians haven't managed to work together, or take steps toward running as a united faction," he said.

Established in 2015, the Joint List was a political alliance that consisted of the four parties: Ra'am, led by Mansour Abbas; Hadash, headed by Ayman Odeh; Ta'al of Ahmed Tibi; and Balad by Sami Abou Shahadeh. They ran together in previous Knesset elections under one political umbrella, representing a united front.

In 2020, the Joint List won 15 seats, the largest number since its establishment as Israel. On the eve of the 2021 election, however, Abbas's Ra'am quit the Joint List to run on its own. The other parties stayed together but won only six seats. Before the November 2022 elections, more disagreements led to another split among the remaining three parties of the Joint List, dividing them into two.

This time, Odeh's Hadash and Tibi's Ta'al joined forces, gaining five seats, while Abu Shahadeh's Balad ran on an independent ticket but failed to cross the threshold and was left out of the Knesset. Ra'am, for its part, secured five seats. Since then, the Joint List hasn't reunited.

"People are dissatisfied with this ongoing split. If the parties don't reach an agreement to come together, some Arab citizens will likely boycott the elections and will not go out to vote,"

Darawshe told The Jerusalem Post, noting the widespread frustration felt in the Arab community. A new survey conducted by the Konrad Adenauer Program for Jewish-Arab Cooperation shows that if the Joint List is reestablished, 62% of Arab citizens in Israel would participate in the vote. In the absence of such a list, the poll found, voter turnout is expected to drop to 51%.

But 77% said they support an Arab party joining the coalition formed after the next elections. Many Arab Israeli residents are convinced that political unity may bring them more power and a better chance to address the critical problems they face, especially the escalating crime and violence.

What has prevented the Arab parties from reuniting is a deep struggle between two camps. The first, headed by Ra'am leader Mansour Abbas, has been pushing for integration in the State of Israel and focusing more on civil rights for Arab citizens. Abbas made history as the first Arab Israeli leader ever to join an Israeli coalition in 2021.

The other camp, which includes politicians like Ayman Odeh, puts its main focus on Arab-Palestinian identity rather than civil issues. In principle, members of this camp are opposed to being part of any coalition to avoid any responsibility for controversial and sensitive decisions.

Unlike Abbas, who takes a pragmatic approach and declares that he recognizes Israel as a Jewish state, members of the rival group maintain a hardline position.

They view the Arab citizens living in Israel as an integral part of the Palestinian people, and often stress the national aspirations of the Palestinians, calling for "an end to the occupation."

Abbas's political opponents have accused him in recent days of foiling efforts to form a joint list ahead of the elections, claiming that he doesn't want to close the door to a future coalition.

"Increasing the number of seats is not a goal in itself," Abbas pushed back in an interview with the Arab media. "It's only a tool for achieving our aim, which is to serve the Arab society in Israel and change its reality for the better." He explained that winning more seats as part of the Joint List is not enough, and that the real challenge is to turn political power into meaningful achievements for Arabs in Israel.

In response, members from Odeh's camp criticized Abbas for prioritizing budgets while overlooking the Palestinian cause and the national aspects of Israeli-Arabs.

Later, Odeh himself joined the critics, describing Abbas's acceptance of Israel as a Jewish state as a "sellout." He said he disagrees with Abbas's view that the Jewish identity of the state is an existential matter for the Jews.

Despite the controversy, Darawshe, the political analyst, said he did not rule out the possibility of a "technical unity" shortly before the elections, to prevent a waste of Arab votes. The day after the election, however, the differences are likely to resurface as both camps are set to resume the debate over joining the coalition.

As a Reform Rabbi, I would add that there will be no peace until both Palestinians and Israelis declare that the chant 'From the river to the sea' becomes an aspirational call for freedom, human rights, and peaceful coexistence, and not for death, destruction, or hate.

We can make it truly aspirational by making it focus on both peoples first, and the land second. "From the river to the sea Palestinians and Israelis should be freed of hatred and suffering by 'a two states for two peoples sharing of the land peacefully solution.'"

If all Arabs and Jews can live up to the ideal that 'the descendants of Abraham's sons should never make war against each other' is the will of God; we will help fulfill the 2700 year old vision of Prophet Isaiah: "In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt, and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. In that day Israel will join a three-party alliance with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing upon the heart. The LORD of Hosts will bless them saying, "Blessed be Egypt My people, Assyria My handiwork, and Israel My inheritance."...(Isaiah 19:23-5)

If we all can live up to the ideal that religious pluralism as the will of God we will help fulfill the 2700 year old vision of Prophet Isaiah: "On that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt, and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. In that day Israel will join a three-party alliance with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing upon the heart. The LORD of Hosts will bless them saying, "Blessed be Egypt My people, Assyria My handiwork, and Israel My inheritance."...(Isaiah 19:23-5)