Shortly after Netanyahu's statement, Winter told Almog Boker on Channel 12 that his pledge at the start of the campaign to recommend only Netanyahu for prime minister "may have been a mistake." As JFeed reported, Likud quickly turned the remark against him. The party said Winter would "take votes from the right and transfer them to a left-wing government."
Wednesday's appeal followed a meeting on Tuesday in Eli, in the Binyamin region. Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich met there with Rabbi Eli Sadan, who founded and heads the Bnei David pre-military academy and is Winter's mentor. The two leaders hoped Sadan could persuade his former student, a reserve general, to step aside. The Jerusalem Post reported that Likud campaign manager Zvika Brot, Netanyahu's chief of staff Ido Norden and Smotrich campaign manager Omer Rahamim also attended. Norden and Rahamim are both alumni of Sadan's academy.
Yeshiva World News reported that the meeting was arranged after internal polling received on Monday. The polling sharpened fears that hundreds of thousands of right-wing votes could be lost to smaller parties. On the same day, Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz announced he was leaving the race. Smotrich then urged Winter and other party leaders to quit. "Ofer Winter, along with several other splinter parties that have absolutely no chance of crossing the electoral threshold, are gambling with the future of the State of Israel," Smotrich said.
Other ministers made the same case. Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi held up Gantz's exit as an example: "If Winter withdraws, I will take my hat off to him." Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar warned that "the cost of wasting right-wing votes in these elections could be devastating."
Winter has refused to step aside. "Netanyahu, I heard that you and Smotrich are on your way to Rabbi Eli Sadan to put pressure on me to withdraw," he said. "The people of Israel are fed up with the ugly and unethical campaign you have led and the dishonest methods you are using." He pledged that his party is "going all the way with all our strength."
i24NEWS reported that Winter's comments followed claims by party members that they had faced threats and harassment meant to push them out of the party. One candidate has already left. Davidi Ben Zion, eighth on the slate, withdrew the previous week and cited the risk that the party would miss the threshold. Winter has argued that Netanyahu would bear responsibility if Amcha Yisrael fails to win seats.
As JFeed reported on Wednesday, Smotrich has also offered Winter a ministerial post from the Religious Zionism party's quota if he withdraws. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said the same day that Winter had been offered a spot both in Likud and with Smotrich, and called his decision to keep running "very strange."
