Religious but no head covering, wears pants and Mizrahi? Congratulations — you are in the crosshairs of Religious Zionism

If you are a religious woman with a record of public activity or a senior position in the private sector, wearing a symbolic head covering or no head covering at all, not intimidated by wearing pants in daily life, living in the area of Ra'anana, Petah Tikva, Givat Shmuel, and happen to be Mizrahi — you are in the crosshairs of the Religious Zionism party.

After the primaries created a list that is identified almost entirely with the settlement movement in Judea and Samaria, the party is currently intensifying efforts to find a female candidate who will balance the list and help expand the circles of support to the moderate and urban religious-national public as well.

The composition of the list elected in the Religious Zionism party primaries continues to occupy the party's senior officials. Alongside satisfaction with the team, the party understands that all the leading members of the list are clearly identified with the settlement movement in Judea and Samaria, and that in order to expand the base of support, it will be necessary to add figures who will also appeal to other audiences within Religious Zionism.

As first published on Walla, one of the central targets is Sderot Mayor Alon Davidi, who is marked as a candidate for placement in a senior spot. However, at the same time, another effort is underway, quiet but intense, to locate a female candidate who will represent the "light" religious-national stream. Among the names that have come up were several well-known media personalities and figures in the private sector.

The party is looking for a woman with a significant public or professional record, who comes from the mainstream of Religious Zionism in cities like Givat Shmuel, Petah Tikva, Ra'anana, or settlements with a similar character. The party even speaks of a candidate who will project a lifestyle different from that of the current list — one who might wear only a symbolic head covering, and sometimes not wear one at all, wear pants, and be identified with the "light" religious-national public.

Senior party members admit that the list elected in the primaries is perceived by the public as a settlers' list, and that even if it involves people with rich parliamentary and public experience, a balance is required that will allow reaching out to religious-national families in the center of the country, to urban audiences, and to voters who are not identified with the settlement movement. The goal, they say in the party, is not to change the ideological character of Religious Zionism, but to present a list that is more diverse in social, geographic, and stylistic terms. It is estimated that in the coming weeks, efforts will be intensified to locate a female candidate who will agree to join the list, within the framework of the reserved spots available to party chairman Bezalel Smotrich.