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The2025 Blue and White leadership election is an announced upcomingleadership election for the Israeli political partyBlue and White. It is widely expected that incumbent leaderBenny Gantz will run.
The leadership vote arose out of a disagreement withinNational Unity (also known as "State Camp"), anIsraeli politicalalliance which the party belongs to.[1] When it had contested the2022 Knesset election, the alliance included theIsrael Resilience Party (led by Gantz); theNew Hope party (led byGideon Sa'ar); andGadi Eisenkot andMatan Kahana, who and were elected to the Knesset asindependent members of the alliance'selectoral list. However, in 2024, New Hope left the alliance leaving only Gantz's Israel Resilience Party and the two MKs serving as independents within the alliance.
In early 2025, amid slipping support for the alliance inopinion polling for the2026 Israeli legislative election, speculation arose thatBenny Gantz (head ofNational Unity) might be challenged for leadership of the alliance by Eisenkot (a member of the Knesset belonging to the alliance, and a formerchief of the IDF).[1] Eisenkot joined the alliance in 2022 with the condition that Gantz would agree to later democratize its internal structure.[2]Haaretz reported that Gantz had previously promised Eisenkotz that a leadership election would be held before the next legislative election, and Gantz's avoidance of arranging for such a vote had become a point of frustration between them.[3] Reports emerged that Eisenkot was considering leaving the alliance and running on a competing electoral list for the next election, and that most of the Jewish parties of the Knesset's opposition were making overtures to him, including Bennett.[2] Scenario polls that included a party led by former prime ministerNaftali Bennett contesting the legislative election, as is widely expected, showed that National Unity would win several more seats with Eisenkot at its helm than it would with Gantz.[3] In February, Gantz stated that he intended to remain the alliance's leader.[4]
On 8 June, the alliance announced that it would schedule a leadership election to be held in the coming months, and would additionally open its membership for public registration.[4] The election will be held amongst members of the party's central committee, which will be expanded as part of the process.[5]Haaretz reported that Eisenkot is considering a challenge to Gantz,[4] though Eisenkot announced on 30 June that he would leave the alliance and the Knesset.[6] The following day, it was announced that the alliance would be renamed "Blue and White", which it held previously,[7] though the party decided to rename the Knesset faction Blue and White-National Unity, which was approved by the Knesset House Committee on 7 July 2025.[8]
After Eisenkot's departure, Gantz confirmed that his party would still carry forward with holding a leadership primary, and that other aspects of planned democratization of party would be implemented. Gantz also announced that the party will increase the size of its party assembly in order to allow for public membership of the party, and that votes would be held to elect a number of lower positions in party leadership as well.[9]
The following individual is described as very likely to run:
Political party leadership elections in Israel  | |||||
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| Labor Party | |||||
| Likud | |||||
| Kadima | |||||
| Blue and White | |||||
| Yesh Atid | |||||
| Others |
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