Jerusalem, 21 October, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Ofer Winter, chairman of the Amcha Yisrael party, declared Wednesday evening that he would not withdraw from the race for the Knesset.
The decision coincides with the start of IDF soldiers’ voting in some 850 stations.
Winter responded after Religious Zionism chairman Bezalel Smotrich offered him a ministerial position in a future government in exchange for dropping out.
“Smotrich offered me a position in a government that hasn’t even been formed yet. You’ve got it all wrong,” Winter said. “We didn’t come here for a job, as you’re accustomed to. We came to make changes.”
Winter reiterated that his party belongs to the right-wing camp but insisted that its support would not come without conditions. “There will be no blank check,” he said, adding that cooperation would depend on whether his demands were met.
He ruled out supporting a government led by Yair Golan, declaring: “That will never happen.”
