The National camp in Israel has begun mobilizing for what many within the right-wing bloc believe will be the country’s most consequential Knesset election since the founding of the state.
As a result, the TKUMA Movement, an Israel-based NGO advocating Israeli sovereignty, has launched a grassroots campaign aimed at mobilizing voters and maximizing turnout to help secure a right-wing victory at the ballot box on Oct. 27.
TKUMA unveiled the campaign on July 16 at its third “Right-Wing Conference,” held at Expo Tel Aviv, which drew more than 1,000 attendees, including ministers, Knesset members, rabbis and other prominent figures. The event featured speeches and panel discussions on the security, diplomatic, legal and social issues dominating the public agenda.
TKUMA founder and chairman Berale Crombie told JNS in the aftermath of the conference that Israel’s elections are a microcosm of the broader global struggle between conservative and progressive values—a battle, he said, which has reached a boiling point in the country.
He pointed out that the left-wing camp is entering the election season highly organized, with foreign funding, extensive databases and significant resources at its disposal.
But, he said, he believes that, for the first time, the right-wing camp, which is currently in power, is “lifting its head” and ready to fight for its beliefs.
“Ten to 15 years ago, the right didn’t have a clue,” he said. “They were also afraid to challenge Israel’s ‘deep state.’ The upcoming elections are really the culmination of the confrontation between these two camps.”
The “deep state” debate in Israel revolves around accusations by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies that unelected bureaucrats, the legal system and security establishment are actively thwarting the government’s policies.
Crombie said he believes the right-wing camp has a clear majority among Israeli voters, but that it will only translate into an electoral victory if those people turn out on election day.
“There are more right-wing voters than left-wing voters in Israel. They have to come to the ballot box. If they all come out, we will win big,” he said. “The right has to leave their homes.”
Adv. Odelia Kedmi, a Zichron Yaakov council member who also represents immigrant rights, will lead TKUMA’s election apparatus.
She agrees that Israel is entering a critical period, saying TKUMA’s election strategy has two main focuses: encouraging right-wing voters to get to the polls and reaching first-time voters who have never participated in an election.
Kedmi told JNS that hundreds of thousands of eligible voters do not cast ballots in each election, making voter mobilization a key factor in determining the outcome. She said TKUMA activists will be sent to speak with high-school seniors and students in pre-military academies in an effort to expose younger Israelis to conservative values.
“There is an organized effort by the left to confuse this generation, so we want to reach this youth,” she said. “We know that deep in their hearts, the younger population is more right-wing, more nationalistic and more patriotic. We feel that this can get lost because there is heavy pressure from well-funded left-wing parties to influence their thinking. Let’s remember that what we’ve learned from this war is that this is the victory generation.”
Kedmi said the younger generation is searching for meaning and that Israel is at a crossroads over its future direction.
“The army needs to win wars and protect lives. It is not a social experiment,” she said, criticizing what she described as progressive influences within Israeli institutions. She also criticized what she called liberal and progressive rulings by the Supreme Court, saying they undermine the prioritization of Jewish values. Regarding immigration policy, she argued that decisions that risk soldiers’ lives in order to protect others conflict with those Jewish values.
Kedmi further accused the education system of moving away from Israel’s Jewish identity due to progressive influences.
“Today, in elections, you see left-wing parties minimizing any kind of connection to Jewish elements because it has become toxic,” she said. “But the victory generation is yearning for meaning.”
Zvika Mor, father of released hostage Eitan Mor and a Knesset candidate on the Religious Zionism list, said the upcoming elections would determine the moral character of the State of Israel.
Mor told JNS that the elections represent a choice between Israel’s “deep state” and the direction of the country’s progress.
“It’s a question of the culture of the State of Israel—whether it will remain a Jewish state or become a European-style state in the Middle East,” he said.
He argued that three years ago Israel was a weak state that was afraid to send its soldiers into battle. Today, he said, Israel has become a regional power in the Middle East, but warned that this strength could be lost.
“Unfortunately, the left has not understood that every time you talk about peace agreements, the Arabs understand that you are weak and that you do not have the power to fight,” he said. “We have to move forward toward achieving our objectives in a way that forces the Arabs to accept what we want.”
Mor criticized diplomatic negotiations with Iran, arguing that the United States should have used greater force.
“Trump made a mistake negotiating with Iran. He lost everything,” he said, adding that Iran’s infrastructure should have been targeted until the regime was forced to surrender, comparing the approach to Churchill’s war strategy against Nazi Germany.
He said the right in this country understands that Israel must act from a position of strength, while the left remains stuck in what he called the “Oslo mentality,” which he said has repeatedly wrought tragedy.
At the TKUMA conference, Mor also leveled harsh criticism against the judicial system and called for reforms, strengthening the national camp and a decisive victory in the elections.
Other speakers at the event highlighted the government’s record and warned against a potential shift in direction.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich underscored what he described as the right-wing government’s achievements during its near-full term in office, including legal reforms, economic performance during the war, community expansion in Judea and Samaria and the repeal of the Disengagement Law in northern Samaria. He warned that a government led by Gadi Eisenkot would reverse these policies and called on right-wing voters to unite behind the national camp.
Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli focused his remarks on Israel’s wartime achievements against Hezbollah, Hamas and Iran, saying the country had strengthened deterrence and deepened security cooperation with the United States. He also warned that a government dependent on the Arab party, Ra’am, would lead to security retreats and undermine these gains.
