The name of the new party will be "Together โ€“ Led by Naftali Bennett," Bennett's spokesperson said. According to them, this move will lead to the "healing" of the state. "Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and former Prime Minister Yair Lapid will announce the first step in the process of healing the State of Israel: merging the Yesh Atid party and the Bennett 2026 party into a single party led by former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett," a statement from Bennett's office said. They also stated that this will lead to the consolidation of the opposition, whose disunity has been exploited by Benjamin Netanyahu for years. "This move unites the 'reform bloc,' ends internal infighting, and allows all efforts to be focused on a decisive victory in the upcoming elections and to lead Israel toward necessary reforms," Bennett's office added. A recent Maariv poll showed that Bennett's party is tied with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party at 24 seats in the Knesset, while Yesh Atid won 7. Bennett, who previously stated that his approach is based on advancing issues on which there is political consensus, has reportedly been in contact with party leaders Lapid and Yashar, as well as Gadi Eisenkot, to discuss the potential formation of a new joint party called "New Israel." Opposition party leaders are celebrating the merger of Naftali Bennett's and opposition leader Yair Lapid's parties into a single electoral list, while members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition condemn the move as aimed at bringing the Arab party Ra'am of Mansour Abbas to power. "I welcome any unification in the bloc," said Democrat leader Yair Golan, stating that his party will represent a strong democratic and liberal backbone in the next government. The Bennett-Lapid government, which was in power from 2021 to 2022, made history by including the Arab party Ra'am, led by Mansour Abbas, in its diverse coalition of right-wing, centrist, and left-wing parties. The coalition marked the first break in Benjamin Netanyahu's premiership since 2009, and many on the right fiercely opposed it, pressuring members of Bennett's Yamina party to leave. They succeeded after a year, when party representatives brought down the government, triggering elections that returned Netanyahu to power.