Avigdor Liberman on Sunday morning posted an election campaign video which called on people to vote for his Yisrael Beytenu party in order to achieve a “nationalist, liberal government without haredim.”
"You get what you vote for," Liberman wrote on his Twitter account under the video.
According to the video, a vote for Netanyahu’s Likud means a government with religious right-wing parties and haredi parties.
On the other hand, a vote for Blue and White headed by Benny Gantz and Yair Lapid means a government with Arab and leftist parties - “as well as” haredi parties.
The third option posited by the video is a vote for Liberman’s Yisrael Beytenu, which the video claims would lead to a government consisting of Likud, Blue and White and Yisrael Beytenu - “without haredim.”
“Liberman - yes to a Jewish state, no to a halakhic state,” the video concludes.
Though, following the previous elections, Liberman slammed the idea of a "unity government" including both Likud and Blue and White, and emphasized he would only recommend Netanyahu to be prime minister, earlier this month he changed his tune, announcing he would work to force a unity government and would recommend the leader of the largest party in the upcoming elections.
He attributed his change in attitude to the budget deficit and security concerns, and the claim that a unity government was the only way to sidestep a “halakhic government” including haredi parties.
“What changed? Two things: 1. It turned out that the State of Israel is in the midst of a deep budgetary crisis with a deficit of more than NIS 50 billion, and security challenges for which this is not the place to elaborate. 2. It is clear to me, beyond any doubt, that Likud and Blue and White won’t together have 60 Knesset seats in the upcoming elections, and each will prefer to form a narrow government with the haredim, ie. a halakhic government,” he wrote last week.
“The only force that can make Likud and Blue White agree to a formula that most Israelis hope for - a nationalist and liberal government, not a halakhic government - is Yisrael Beytenu," he concluded.