The crisis in forming the Joint List: The compromise proposal - and Tibi's sense of deprivation

This week was supposed to see the start of a process to establish a joint list of the three Arab parties – Hadash, Balad, and Ta'al. However, the dispute over candidate placements, and especially the opposition of Ta'al, led by MK Ahmad Tibi, to the reconciliation committee's proposal, threw a wrench in the works. The committee claims that an agreement can still be reached, but Ta'al accuses it of an "attempt to weaken the party," clarifying: "This is not reconciliation, but the opposite of reconciliation."

The race toward the Knesset elections entered another tailspin last night, after efforts to establish a joint list of the three Arab parties reached a dead end. On Monday, the joint list was supposed to be finalized after the reconciliation committee, which was established to bridge the gap between the parties, presented a framework for allocating seats. However, the proposal was not accepted by Ta'al, which claimed that it deprives the party and its voters. At this stage, the parties are still trying to bridge the gaps, and while it is unlikely that Ahmad Tibi's party will run alone, the agreements that would allow for a final deal have not yet been reached.

The person trying to work for unity is former MK Mazen Ghanaim, mayor of Sakhnin and chairman of the National Committee for Arab Local Authorities. In an interview with Ynet, Ghanaim said that after the failure of contacts between the parties, the Arab local authorities offered themselves as a factor that could help in mediation. "After the failure of the trio, we saw out of responsibility that we should offer our services, in the hope that we would succeed in mediating between them," he said. "If they give us a mandate today, we are ready to work night and day so that there will be an agreement." However, according to him, as of now, the committee does not have an official mandate from the three parties.

Ta'al against the "reconciliation committee"

In Ta'al, they categorically reject the proposal presented by the reconciliation committee. In a statement published by the party, it was claimed that the proposal is "biased, strange, and outrageous," and that it exceeds the mandate given to the committee. The party claims that the committee was intended to mediate and bring positions closer, not to force one of the parties into an arrangement that it had already rejected in direct negotiations. "How can a committee established to bring positions closer offer one of the sides less than what was offered to it initially in the negotiations?" they wondered in Ta'al.

The party also pointed to a dispute within the reconciliation committee itself, claiming that four members of the committee opposed the proposal and two key members even resigned as a result. Ta'al clarified that it does not oppose unity in principle, but will not agree to a move that harms its status and the representation of its voters.

On the other hand, in Hadash, they welcomed the reconciliation committee's decision. Hadash chairman, Dr. Yousef Jabareen, said: "We welcome the reconciliation committee's decision on the composition of the Joint List. We see this decision as an expression of the public's will. A large and strong Joint List will work with all its might to send the Netanyahu–Ben Gvir–Smotrich government home." Sources in Hadash stated that the party appreciates the desire for unity and believes that at this stage there is no longer room for continued disputes.

"We need unity more than ever"

Ghanaim, who knows the Arab political system from the inside, also addressed the possibility that the union will not come to fruition. According to him, the goal of the Arab local authorities is to increase turnout. "If we do not succeed in getting people to vote and reaching a turnout of 65% to 70%, the right will certainly return and form the government. If there is no government of change, those who will pay the price will be the Arab society in general and the Arab local authorities in particular," he warned.

Parallel to the struggle over the positions on the list, the question of what the Arab political map will look like on election day is becoming sharper. In a scenario where an agreement is not reached, the Arab society may face an election campaign in which two main lists will compete: Ra'am on one hand, and the list composed of Hadash, Ta'al, and Balad, if the three parties indeed succeed in reaching an agreement. However, even this possibility is not guaranteed at this stage.