MEF Menu
Middle East ForumSupport MEF
Middle East Forum Israel Election 2026
Parties / Unaligned

Blue and White (Knesset faction: National Unity) כחול לבן (סיעת המחנה הממלכתי)

0
MEF poll average, seats
0 to 0
range in window
8
seats now
Seats in every 2026 poll; line is a five-poll rolling mean; dotted line = threshold
Leader
Benny Gantz, Chairman of Blue and White and of the National Unity Knesset faction; incumbent MK; former defence minister and IDF chief of staff. [source, August 28, 2026]
Bloc
Unaligned
Founded
Blue and White was formed in 2019 as an alliance of Israel Resilience (Gantz), Telem and Yesh Atid; it ran alone in 2021 and with New Hope as National Unity in 2022 (IDI, https://en.idi.org.il/israeli-elections-and-parties/parties/...).
Seats, 25th Knesset
8
Status 2026
Filed a 41-name list on 2026-09-08 despite months of polling below the threshold; no merger materialized (Times of Israel, https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/gantz-submits-1..., 2026-09-08). Earlier merger talks with Gilad Erdan's Unity collapsed; Erdan withdrew from the race on 2026-09-04.
List Status
Approved by the Central Elections Committee plenum on 2026-09-27; 39 candidates as of the CEC page last updated 2026-10-01. Ballot letters: כן. Ballot name: כחול לבן בראשות בני גנץ.
MEF Poll Average
0 (below threshold in most polls); range 0 to 0 across 2 polls in the window

Background

Blue and White ran three times in 2019 to 2020 as a centrist alliance with Yesh Atid and Telem, winning 33 to 35 seats, then split when Gantz joined a Netanyahu government in 2020 (IDI). In 2022 it ran with New Hope as National Unity and won 12 seats; the faction joined the emergency government after October 7, 2023 with Gantz and Eisenkot in the war cabinet, and left on June 9, 2024 (Times of Israel, https://www.timesofisrael.com/urging-elections-gantz-quits-w...). Eisenkot and Kahana left in June and July 2025; Tropper left in May 2026 and Ginzburg joined Bennett in August 2026 (Times of Israel; JPost). Gantz announced a partnership with former fire commissioner Dedi Simchi in June 2026 and explored a joint slate with Yuli Edelstein and Ayelet Shaked at Edelstein's home on July 20 (Ynet, https://www.ynetnews.com/article/s1o0ibanme). On August 28 Gantz rejected calls to withdraw: 'Nothing will move me from first place' (JPost).

Knesset List

Order and Hebrew names from the Central Elections Committee (CEC list page, 2026-10-01). Lists are as approved by the CEC plenum on September 27, 2026, with candidate resignations recorded since; ballot letters: כן. Party of record in brackets for joint lists. † marks names whose English spelling is transliterated from the filing rather than taken from English-language press.

  1. Benny Gantz גנץ בנימין [source, October 1, 2026]
  2. Pnina Tamano-Shata תמנו פנינה (פנחש) [source, October 1, 2026]
  3. Aliza Bloch בלוך גאולה עליזה [source, October 1, 2026]
  4. Roee Konkol קונקול רועי [source, October 1, 2026]
  5. Rotem Avidar Tzalik אבידר צאליק רתם [source, October 1, 2026]
  6. Alon Schuster שוסטר אלון נתן [source, October 1, 2026]
  7. Mufid Mar'i † מרעי מופיד [source, October 1, 2026]
  8. Malka Yehudit Oliel † אוליאל מלכה יהודית [source, October 1, 2026]
  9. Ariel Baziz † בזיז אריאל [source, October 1, 2026]
  10. Moria Silfen † סילפן מוריה [source, October 1, 2026]
  11. Juliana Ben Avraham † בן אברהם ג'וליאנה [source, October 1, 2026]
  12. Monica Yael Lev-Cohen † לב-כהן מוניקה יעל [source, October 1, 2026]
  13. Shay Zolden † זולדן שי [source, October 1, 2026]
  14. Lily Kedar † קידר לילי [source, October 1, 2026]
  15. Shay David † דוד שי [source, October 1, 2026]
  16. Ben Peretz † פרץ בן [source, October 1, 2026]
  17. Sharona Amar † עמר שרונה [source, October 1, 2026]
  18. Ruth Shalev Vodislavsky † שלו וודיסלבסקי רות [source, October 1, 2026]
  19. Nahi Yosef † יוסף נאהי [source, October 1, 2026]
  20. David Assayag † אסייג דוד [source, October 1, 2026]
  21. Noa Mantever † מנטבר נעה [source, October 1, 2026]
  22. Emanuel Eliyahu Strabvordis † סטרבורבדיס עמנואל אליהו [source, October 1, 2026]
  23. Tzion Rahav † רהב ציון [source, October 1, 2026]
  24. Michael Shay Garbi † גרבי מיכאל שי [source, October 1, 2026]
  25. Moshe Mor Adri † אדרי משה מור [source, October 1, 2026]
  26. Yeshayahu Shaked † שקד ישעיהו [source, October 1, 2026]
  27. Yosef Zimbris † זימבריס יוסף [source, October 1, 2026]
  28. Ruth Valenti † ולנטי רות [source, October 1, 2026]
  29. Michael Gottlieb † גוטליב מיכאל [source, October 1, 2026]
  30. Yigal Even Ziv † אבן זיו יגאל [source, October 1, 2026]
  31. Efrat Omiel Pedida † אומיאל פדידה אפרת [source, October 1, 2026]
  32. Yasmin Arditi † ארדיטי יסמין [source, October 1, 2026]
  33. Omer Amit † עמית עומר [source, October 1, 2026]
  34. Roee Salem † סאלם רועי [source, October 1, 2026]
  35. Talia Chava Amit † עמית טליה חוה [source, October 1, 2026]
  36. Moshe Adi Rabinovich † רבינוביץ משה עדי [source, October 1, 2026]
  37. Raz Meirman † מאירמן רז [source, October 1, 2026]
  38. Barak Inbar Fakelman † ענבר פקלמן ברק [source, October 1, 2026]
  39. Amir Peled † פלד אמיר [source, October 1, 2026]

Platform and Positions

otherGantz: 'A broad Zionist government means uniting the responsible, moderate Zionist MKs around the key decisions Israel can no longer postpone: security, service for all, a constitution, and public education.' He said Ben-Gvir and 'other extremists' must be returned to the political margins. Leader statement; no published 2026 platform located. [source, August 20, 2026]
Haredi draftGantz presented a 'draft for all' law and an agreed judicial reform as his conditions in talks with Erdan (N12, 2026-08-28). Simchi said the alliance would seek to 'expand enlistment across all sectors'. [source, August 28, 2026]
IranGantz: 'Iran is never allowed to revive its nuclear program'; he stressed preventing Hezbollah and Hamas from rebuilding military capabilities. Leader statement. [source, 2026]
securityGantz on 103FM: 'Lebanon and Israel are two neighboring countries, and we should not be dependent on others' regarding Lebanon policy; he argued a Zionist unity government of right and left is required. Leader statement. [source, June 14, 2026]
Arab citizensSimchi (Army Radio): the alliance would sit with everyone 'except for the Arab parties in their present form', explicitly including Ra'am; Gantz's own position was not stated in that report. [source, 2026-06]
judiciaryGantz's conditions to Erdan included a judicial reform 'by agreement' (N12). Simchi: the party would not give either side the 61 seats for a narrow government and would force a unity government. [source, June 30, 2026]

Recent Moves

What MEF Has Published

Not Verified

Sources