Background The
Second Alignment, an alliance headed by Israel's dominant
Labor Party, held practical hegemony over the left-wing of Israeli politics. Smaller, more left-leaning parties were either targeted towards
Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel, such as
Hadash, or, in the case of Zionist or post-Zionist parties, very small, such as
Ratz or the ill-fated
Left Camp of Israel, leading to neither group being viable for government formation. Multiple political realignments starting with the
1977 'upheaval' (the electoral victory of the
Likud over the Alignment) led to the rise of alternatives to Labor. The Left Camp dissolved over the issue on how to negotiate with the
Palestine Liberation Organization, with the PLO-sceptic faction, including
Ran Cohen and
Binyamin Temkin, joining
Shulamit Aloni's Ratz, a liberal socialist party committed to improving civil liberties for all Israeli citizens, and negotiating a peace deal. The
Shinui party had formed a large liberal alliance known as the
Democratic Movement for Change, but this collapsed in 1978, with Shinui seeking out an image as a party that sided with the left-wing on issues of peace and secularism, despite being economically right-wing, though it lost a legislator,
Mordechai Virshubski, to Ratz. When Labor entered a national unity government with the Likud in
1984, it angered the largest partner in the Alignment, the democratic socialist
Mapam, who left the Alignment and resumed its existence as an independent political party. As early as 1985, Mapam and Ratz, who agreed on many economic, social and geopolitical issues, considered an alliance. The outbreak of the
First Intifada had forced politicians from across the spectrum to rethink their stances on Palestinian statehood. For example, Mapam, who had previously supported giving the
West Bank to
Jordan, began to support an independent
Palestinian state. Furthermore, members of both parties, as well as of Labor, collaborated within the
Peace Now organisation.
Beginnings Leading up to the
1988 Israeli legislative election, all attempts to form a joint list between the pacifist left parties failed, as Ratz, Mapam and Shinui all contested the election separately. When Ratz signed a surplus vote agreement with the Alignment, Mapam accused Ratz of wanting to "remove Mapam from the political scene", to which Ratz leader
Shulamit Aloni responded by saying that "Mapam's panic is understandable. It is a spoiled party, rich in assets and jobs, which fears any young, fresh organization without vested economic interests that comes to fight with clean hands." She also highlighted the inevitability of the two parties becoming allies, comparing Mapam to the biblical character
Saul throwing his spear at
David. Furthermore, Mapam's leader,
Yair Tzaban, was a long-time rival of Ran Cohen, ever since the two were members of the Left Camp, something which made a union seem even more unlikely. Mapam formed a surplus vote agreement with Shinui. Ratz's role in the election was its most important ever. Some opinion polls put Ratz at eight seats, a clear case to become Labor's main coalition partner. Ratz won five seats, while Mapam, once Israel's second-largest party, sank to just three seats. Shinui went from three to two seats. None of the parties joined the next government, a continuation of the national unity government. During the 1989 local elections, the three left-Zionist parties made joint lists in many towns and cities. In 1990, all ten of their MKs agreed to co-ordinate policy on most issues, to pave the way for a joint list in the
1992 elections. In fact, a provisional list order was agreed where the three party leaders would be on top, followed by Ratz's
Yossi Sarid. The three parties would also appear together at demonstrations. At the same time, questions were raised over the feasibility of the strengthening alliance between the three. While all three had virtually no differences on the issue of peace, Mapam was an anti-capitalist party based in the
kibbutzim, and its affiliated
Kibbutz Artzi movement was against forming an alliance with Ratz and especially Shinui, two parties who drew support from the upper and middle class in suburban areas and cities. The second-in-command of Shinui,
Avraham Poraz, was a self-described 'capitalist'. In July 1991, Ran Cohen attempted to recruit
Ezer Weizman, leader of the centrist, but pacifist and Arab-inclusive, party
Yahad, into the fold. However, leaked contents of their discussion, and Shulamit Aloni's perception that her leadership of the alliance was being threatened, caused the talks to break down, with Weizman calling the left-wing union a 'farce'. Nevertheless, the left-wing union remained the only viable option for Ratz, Mapam and Shinui. Polls in 1991 predicted that a unified list between the three could win up to eighteen seats, while remaining separate would keep them at ten.
As an alliance (1992–1997) On 1 March 1992, Ratz, Mapam and Shinui agreed to create a joint Knesset faction and electoral alliance. It was initially called '
Democratic Israel', chosen among other proposed names including 'The Democratic Union' (coincidentally used by Meretz in
2019), 'Different Israel' and 'The Triangle'. Its election symbol, (), combined
Mapam () and
Ratz (). Under the agreement, Shulamit Aloni would lead the list, and another four of the top ten would be reserved for Ratz members. Within the top 16, there would be at least three women and two Arab candidates. By the time of the election campaign, the party's name was changed to '
Meretz', with 'Democratic Israel' appearing in the party's ballot subtitle. Although Shinui was not included in the acronym, it was referenced in the party’s campaign slogan: (
A government with vigor [Meretz]
, the strength to make the change [Shinui]). Mapam had been established before Israel's independence and therefore had a strong legacy network of kibbutzim and the
Hashomer Hatzair organisation to support Meretz, while Ratz and Shinui contributed their wealthier, more urban voters to the new alliance. In the
1992 Israeli legislative election, Meretz won twelve seats, an increase from the combined ten seats that the three constituent parties had won in
1988. This result made Meretz the third-largest party in the Knesset. It became the major coalition partner of Prime Minister
Yitzhak Rabin’s
Labor Party and played a role in advancing the
Oslo Accords. Members of Meretz held several ministerial positions: Shulamit Aloni was appointed Minister of Education, but after disagreements over the role of religion in education, she was reassigned in May 1993 as
Minister Without Portfolio. In June 1993, she became
Minister of Communications and
Minister of Science and Technology, later renamed Minister of Science and the Arts.
Amnon Rubinstein, Shinui leader and co-founder, served as
Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, Minister of Science and Technology, and later
Minister of Education, Culture, and Sport. Yossi Sarid of Ratz was appointed
Minister of the Environment, and Mapam leader
Yair Tzaban became
Minister of Immigrant Absorption. Before the
1996 Israeli general election, Aloni was defeated by Sarid in an internal leadership contest and subsequently retired from political life. For the election campaign, Meretz used the song
Shir LaShalom ("A Song for Peace"), which had been sung at a rally minutes before
Yitzhak Rabin was shot and killed by a far-right extremist. The party adapted a line of the song for its slogan, ("Let Meretz Rise!"). Meretz stressed it was the only coalition partner that would keep Labor on a positive path. While Meretz supported
Shimon Peres's bid to become the first directly elected prime minister, they warned that a second ballot for the Labor Party would lead to a Labor-Shas coalition, which would be vulnerable to the right wing. In the election, Meretz lost three seats, and a right-wing government was formed when
Benjamin Netanyahu was directly elected as prime minister.
Merger and decline (1997–2003) In 1997, the three founding parties formally merged to form a single political entity. While Rubinstein supported the merger, most Shinui members opposed it. A faction of Shinui, led by Rubinstein, joined the new party, while the remainder, under
Avraham Poraz, re-established Shinui as an independent party. In 1999, after finding out that he would not be put on a high list spot for the next election,
David Zucker left Meretz to serve as an independent member. He would join
The Greens. In the same year,
Yossi Sarid was reelected as leader of Meretz in an internal leadership election conducted through a vote of party convention delegates. The election preceded the
1999 Israeli general election. During the campaign, Meretz used the slogan, ("Meretz - to be free in our country" - a reference to
Hatikvah), to highlight their support of
separating religion and government. Meretz increased their political hostility towards Shas (who had just served as junior coalition partner to the Likud), and made it a core campaign point to overtake them to become the third party. They also criticised other parties in the centre-left bloc for being 'single issue' and siphoning votes from them. One of those parties, Shinui, led by
Tommy Lapid, was becoming the most vocal anti-clerical party. In the election, the party increased its representation to ten seats. Among those elected was
Hussniya Jabara, who became the first female
Palestinian citizen of Israel to serve as a member of the Knesset. However, Meretz did not achieve their goal of beating Shas. Nevertheless, Meretz joined Prime Minister
Ehud Barak’s coalition government. Sarid was appointed Minister of Education,
Ran Cohen became
Minister of Industry and Trade, and
Haim Oron was appointed
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. After Likud leader Ariel Sharon defeated Barak in the
2001 Israeli prime ministerial election, Meretz found itself out of a coalition again. On 22 October 2002, Amnon Rubinstein retired from the Knesset, and
Uzi Even, next on the Meretz list, entered parliament, becoming the first openly gay member of the Knesset. His appointment drew mixed reactions, particularly from
Haredi parties. For the
2003 Israeli legislative election, Meretz ran a joint list with
Roman Bronfman’s
Democratic Choice. The party’s representation declined to six seats. Sarid assumed responsibility for the result and resigned as party leader, though he continued to serve as a Knesset member until his retirement before the
2006 Israeli legislative election.
Yachad (2003–2006) In December 2003, Meretz merged with
Yossi Beilin’s non-parliamentary Shahar () movement. The intended name for the new party,
Ya’ad (, “Goal”, Ratz's
former name), was abandoned due to concerns that it resembled the
Russian word for "poison" and might alienate Russian-speaking voters. The name
Yachad (יח"ד, meaning "Together") was chosen instead. It also served as a Hebrew acronym for "Social Democratic Israel" (,
Yisrael Hevratit Demokratit). The merger aimed to unify the dovish Zionist camp, which had experienced a significant decline in electoral strength amidst the
Second Intifada. Although the merger included Meretz, Shahar, and Democratic Choice, other targeted movements declined to join. Party membership fell to approximately 20,000, about half the size of its 1999 membership. In March 2004, Yossi Beilin was elected the first chairman of Yachad, defeating Ran Cohen. In July 2005, the party adopted the name
Meretz-Yachad, following opinion polls showing that the public was more familiar with the name Meretz. Beilin opposed dropping
Yachad entirely, and a compromise name was adopted.
2006–2022 In the 2006 elections, the party reverted to using the name
Meretz with the slogan "Meretz on the left, the Human in the center,” and its representation fell to five seats. In 2007,
Tzvia Greenfield, sixth on the party list, entered the Knesset following Beilin’s retirement, becoming the first female Haredi member of the Knesset. In March 2008, an internal leadership election was held. Candidates included Yossi Beilin,
Zehava Galon, Ran Cohen, and Haim Oron. Beilin later withdrew and endorsed Oron, who won the election on 18 March 2008 with 54.5% of the vote, defeating Cohen (27.1%) and Galon (18.1%). On 22 December 2008, Meretz completed a merger with
Hatnua HaHadasha (“The New Movement”) in preparation for the
2009 Israeli legislative election. The joint Meretz–Hatnua HaHadasha list won three seats in the election. The decline in support was largely attributed to progressive Zionist voters casting strategic ballots for the
Kadima party, aiming to help
Tzipi Livni form a government instead of
Likud leader
Benjamin Netanyahu. Following the election, some party members called for the resignation of party chairman Haim Oron and advocated for Zehava Galon to assume leadership. Oron resigned from the Knesset on 23 March 2011 and subsequently stepped down as party leader. A leadership contest was held, with Zehava Galon,
Ilan Gilon, and youth activist Ori Ophir competing for the position. In the primaries on 7 February 2012, Galon was elected party chair with 60.6% of the vote, followed by Gilon with 36.6% and Ophir with 2.8%. In the
2013 Israeli legislative election, Meretz received 4.5% of the national vote and won six Knesset seats. , 1 November 2014 On 8 December 2014, Meretz signed a surplus-vote agreement with the Labor Party for the upcoming
2015 legislative election, the latter set to contest the election as the
Zionist Union. On 19 January 2015, Meretz held its primaries at a meeting of its 1,000-member central committee in the
Tel Aviv Convention Center: Zehava Galon was re-elected party leader, whilst MK
Nitzan Horowitz chose not to stand for re-election. Ahead of the
2015 Israeli legislative election, Meretz signed a surplus-vote agreement with the Labor Party, which ran as part of the
Zionist Union. After early election results suggested that Meretz’s representation would drop to four seats, Galon announced her intention to resign as chairperson and from the Knesset to make room for
Tamar Zandberg, the fifth-place candidate. However, once absentee and soldier ballots were counted, Meretz gained a fifth seat, and Galon rescinded her resignation. Zandberg was elected party leader in 2018. In February 2019, Meretz held its first open primary, with 86% of party members participating. Ilan Gilon placed first and was ranked second on the Knesset slate after Zandberg.
Michal Rozin placed second, followed by
Issawi Frej and
Ali Salalha. In the
April 2019 Israeli legislative election, Meretz won four seats. Ahead of the
September 2019 Israeli legislative election, Meretz formed an electoral alliance called the
Democratic Union with
Ehud Barak’s
Israel Democratic Party and breakaway Labor MK
Stav Shaffir. The alliance, approved on 29 July 2019, won five seats, three of which were held by Meretz members. Before the
2020 Israeli legislative election, Meretz entered a new alliance with Labor and
Gesher, which won seven seats, including three for Meretz.
Return to government (2021–2022) In the
2021 Israeli legislative election, Meretz won six seats and joined a coalition government with
Yesh Atid,
Blue and White,
Yamina, the Labor Party,
Yisrael Beiteinu,
New Hope and the
United Arab List. Three Meretz members held ministerial posts: Nitzan Horowitz as Minister of Health, Tamar Zandberg as Minister of Environmental Protection, and Issawi Frej as Minister of Regional Cooperation. This marked the party’s first participation in a governing coalition since 2000.
Final decline and merger (2022–2024) In the
2022 Israeli legislative election, under the renewed leadership of Zehava Galon, Meretz failed to pass the electoral threshold by approximately 3,800 votes, resulting in the loss of all Knesset representation for the first time. Following the election, Meretz’s local branches and candidates reported financial difficulties due to the party’s lack of parliamentary funding. On 30 June 2024, Meretz agreed to merge with the
Israeli Labor Party to establish a new political party,
The Democrats. Under the terms of the merger, Meretz was guaranteed one position for every four on the new party’s
electoral list and
proportional representation within party bodies. The merger also ensured continued representation for Meretz’s municipal factions. The agreement was ratified at a joint convention of delegates from both parties on 12 July 2024. Following the merger, Meretz and Labor remained separate organizationally and financially, with their respective factions in the
Histadrut, municipal councils, and other external bodies continuing to operate independently while coordinating activities. ==Ideology==