As Religious Zionism moves to the fringe, one politician stands to gain

Avraham Zarbiv, one of the two candidates Bezalel Smotrich had earmarked for a reserved slot on the Religious Zionism Party slate, announced this week that he was withdrawing his candidacy, explaining that he wanted to remain “part of all of Am Yisrael.”

His decision comes against the backdrop of an internal selection process that points to a significant shift in who the Religious Zionism Party now represents.

Even before members cast their ballots, the two most mainstream figures in the faction, Immigration and Absorption Minister Ofir Sofer and MK Moshe Solomon, chose not to seek re-election. Their departures removed two of the party’s most broadly accepted public faces.

The vote itself reinforced that trajectory. The party’s Central Committee elevated Minister Orit Strock, MK Simcha Rothman and MK Zvi Sukkot while passing over the more mainstream candidates, MK Ohad Tal and MK Michal Waldiger. None of the prominent figures from the former Jewish Home (Bayit Yehudi) party, which merged into Religious Zionism, even sought a place on the slate.

The outcome also comes after the party aligned itself with the Haredi parties on legislation expanding exemptions from military service and freezing the arrest of AWOL draft evaders, a move that drew criticism from many within the broader Religious Zionist community.

Taken together, these developments suggest that Smotrich has chosen to consolidate his party around its Hardal wing — the most religiously conservative and nationalist segment of Religious Zionism — rather than maintain broad representation across the Religious Zionist spectrum.

That leaves an important political question heading into the election: Where will mainstream Religious Zionist voters go?

For many religious Zionists seeking a pragmatic, middle-of-the-road voice that combines commitment to Zionism and military service with a broader political outlook, Smotrich’s party may no longer be their natural political home. If that perception continues to grow, Naftali Bennett’s B’Yachad alliance appears well positioned to compete for these voters.

Bennett has historically drawn support from the same mainstream Religious Zionist constituency that once formed the backbone of the Jewish Home and Yamina, while also appealing to more secular center-right voters. With Smotrich’s party increasingly identifying with its Hardal wing, Bennett’s alliance may now be the most natural destination for religious Zionists seeking a broader movement that emphasizes national service, pragmatic governance and cross-sector leadership.