The launch of a new Jewish-Arab political party ahead of Israel's next election has sparked debate over whether it could broaden opposition to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or further fragment an already divided political scene among Palestinians with Israeli citizenship. A Place for Us All, founded by activists from the grassroots movement Standing Together, says it aims to attract younger voters, women and politically disengaged Israelis who have lost faith in existing parties.
Its founders have argued that the party can expand the electorate by bringing new voters into politics rather than drawing support away from existing opposition parties.
However, the launch comes as Palestinian-majority parties continue efforts to rebuild a united electoral front ahead of the next election, raising questions over whether another party could complicate attempts to maximise opposition representation. 'A good idea, but no chance' Sami Abu Shehadeh, leader of the Palestinian nationalist Balad party, told The New Arab he did not believe the new party posed a serious electoral threat or risked fragmenting the anti-Netanyahu vote.
"I don't have this fear," Abu Shehadeh said when asked whether A Place for Us All could draw support away from Palestinian parties or other opponents of Netanyahu.
"They don't have any serious meaningful chance to succeed."
Abu Shehadeh argued that Israel's electoral threshold would ultimately prevent the new movement from entering parliament.
"At the end they will understand that in order to be part of the game you need 150,000 voters," he said. "There is no chance to get there."
The Balad leader also suggested the party was unlikely to remain in the race until election day.
"I don't believe that they are going to continue all the way until the election," he said.
Despite his scepticism, Abu Shehadeh stopped short of attacking the movement, describing its activists as well-intentioned figures responding to Israel's increasingly right-wing political climate.
"These people I know them. They are good people with good will," he said.
"In this crazy fascist society these voices are good voices."
Standing Together has built a profile through social media campaigns promoting Jewish-Arab cooperation, opposition to the genocidal war in Gaza and broader social justice causes.
The organisation's co-directors, Alon-Lee Green and Rula Daood, announced the new party this week.
Abu Shehadeh acknowledged that some Jewish Israelis were searching for an alternative to the country's political trajectory.
"Because of the deterioration within the Jewish community towards right and extreme right and being a fascist society, any leftist activity brings some hope into this very dark era," he said. Arab unity amid 'racism' The debate comes as Arab parties seek to rebuild electoral cooperation after the collapse of the original Joint List, which once united the main Arab-majority parties in Israel.
Balad is currently negotiating a joint slate with the Arab-Jewish Hadash party and Ahmad Tibi's Ta'al party. Abu Shehadeh said the alliance remained open to Mansour Abbas's United Arab List (Ra'am).
"We are now trying to build a joint list from three components," he said. "We will keep the door open for the fourth component."
However, he suggested strategic disagreements remained the main obstacle to a broader alliance.
"Mr Abbas says clearly that according to his point of view, in order to be influential in politics you must be part of the government," Abu Shehadeh said.
"If you are not part of the government, you are not influential and you are not important."
Abu Shehadeh said Abbas's desire to participate in governing coalitions was shaping Ra'am's approach to alliance-building.
"He wants to be part of Netanyahu's government. Everything which is moving him comes from this strategy," he said.
The future of Arab political representation remains one of the key questions heading into the election, particularly amid concerns about declining voter turnout and growing political alienation among Palestinian citizens of Israel.
For Abu Shehadeh, however, the primary challenge facing Arab parties is not competition from a new Jewish-Arab movement.
"Our biggest challenge is Jewish racism," he said.
"The vast majority of the Jewish population, they don't want us to be part of any coalition. They also say they don't want to see us influential in any important decision-making process."
Whether A Place for Us All succeeds in mobilising new voters or fades before election day, as Abu Shehadeh predicts, its emergence has already prompted a wider debate over the future of Israel's opposition and the role of Jewish-Arab political cooperation in challenging Netanyahu's coalition.