The Religious Zionist Party (RZP), founded in 2021 as a successor to National Union-Tkuma, is one of the many parties vying for citizens’ votes in the election for the 26th Knesset, to be held on October 27.
Led by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, RZP is considered a far-right, religious-nationalist party with a platform focused on Jewish identity, settlement expansion, and Israeli sovereignty in the West Bank.
In the 2022 election, a joint list with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's Otzma Yehudit won 14 seats, seven of which were held by RZP in the 25th Knesset.
However, Smotrich has said he intends for RZP to run independently in the upcoming October election. The finance minister recently told The Jerusalem Post that he believed his party could succeed running alone and did not consider Ben-Gvir a partner for a joint run.
While Smotrich will not run alongside Ben-Gvir, he has also ruled out relying on Arab parties to form a government, previously stating that forming a government with the Arab party Ra’am would be worse than the October 7 Hamas massacre.
The finance minister has faced criticism over state budgets approved during the government’s term that allocated significant amounts of funding to the haredi sector. He has also pushed for a sweeping reform over the country's dairy sector, calling for lowering milk and cheese prices by addressing monopolies that dominate the market.
The reform was not passed during the government’s term due to opposition from within the coalition. Smotrich has called for continued efforts to advance the reform and address the high cost of living by increasing competition in the market.
Where Religious Zionist Party stands on the major issues
Smotrich has framed the party's central mission around security, Jewish identity, West Bank sovereignty, and judicial reform.
At the RZP's July 2026 election list launch, Smotrich told The Jerusalem Post that the party, “strengthens the identity of the Jewish people,” and said the party would work on security and “fixes to the judicial system.”
In a separate interview with the Post, he said RZP was “committed to Israel's security” and would seek to “put an end to the disastrous idea of dividing the land, handing over territory, and establishing a terrorist state in the heart of the Land of Israel.”
During the government's term, he also served as the head of the Settlements Administration, a Defense Ministry body established in 2023 that manages matters in West Bank settlements and advances construction and housing in the area.
In his role, Smotrich has pushed to expand Israeli settlements in the West Bank. In July 2026, the government approved plans and funding for 34 new settlements, bringing the number initiated during his tenure to 103.
Similarly, Smotrich has stated that Israel should “return to the whole of Gaza in a big way,” and has called to “abolish the Oslo Accords” and dismantle the Palestinian Authority, replacing it with a military administration before ultimately applying Israeli sovereignty.
The far-right minister’s statements calling for West Bank annexation often drew sharp international condemnation, as well as criticism for harming Israel’s global standing.
Additionally, RZP has provided support for controversial haredi-backed legislation such as the bill to enshrine Torah study in the country's Basic Law, and the bill to freeze the arrests of haredi draft evaders. Opponents argued the legislation encouraged draft evasion amid the IDF’s severe manpower crisis. RZP could continue supporting bills sponsored by the haredi parties if they are part of the country's next coalition together.
While Smotrich has declared his commitment to military service and said he would work on a framework for drafting haredim in the next term, his party has supported legislation sought by the haredi parties. In June, six of the party's seven MKs backed the proposed Basic Law enshrining Torah study as a fundamental value.
MK Moshe Solomon voted against it, and was subsequently removed from his Knesset committee positions by Smotrich.
Judicial reform and the role of the attorney-general
RZP has consistently supported a significant restructuring to Israel's judicial system, including limiting the Supreme Court’s ability to intervene in government decisions and giving elected officials greater influence over judicial appointments.
RZP MK Simcha Rothman, who chairs the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, has been a central figure in advancing the reforms, and Smotrich previously instructed Rothman to advance legislation limiting the court’s use of the “reasonableness” standard.
Regarding the role of the attorney-general, Rothman advanced a bill that would separate the roles of government legal adviser, head of the state prosecution, and the state’s representative in court. Under the proposal, the government would appoint the attorney-general, and their legal opinions would no longer be binding. Rothman accelerated work on the bill again in May 2026, as the coalition pushed to advance several controversial judicial reforms ahead of the election.
What a vote for this party is likely to produce
Smotrich has said RZP will support Benjamin Netanyahu for prime minister and seek to continue the "National Camp" partnership.
If Netanyahu is able to form a coalition, RZP would likely seek to join a government alongside many of the parties that made up the current coalition, including the haredi (ultra-Orthodox) parties, Shas and United Torah Judaism, who Netanyahu has relied on as key coalition partners.
Smotrich would be expected to continue pushing for West Bank annexation and expanded settlement construction. He has also advocated for increasing aliyah rates and told the Post that he has been working on plans to encourage more Diaspora Jews to immigrate to Israel and provide them with additional benefits.
Despite his party's support for haredi-backed legislation in the previous Knesset term, Smotrich told the Post in a recent interview that he believes haredim should be enlisted in the IDF, adding that if his party is part of the next coalition, it would seek to develop a framework for haredi enlistment.
Keshet Neev, Zvika Klein, and Sam Halpern contributed to this report.