Naftali Bennett, leader of the Yachad party, pledged today (Wednesday) to repeal the judicial reform laws advanced by the coalition immediately upon the convening of the 26th Knesset. In a statement posted on X, Bennett outlined four laws he intends to cancel, alongside a plan to enact new Basic Laws.
אני רוצה להיות ברור.
אנחנו נבטל את כל חוקי ההפיכה המשפטית מיד עם כינון הכנסת:
1. ועדה לבחירת שופטים.
2. חוק היוע”משית.
3. חוק מח״ש
4. חוק התקשורתנעביר את מגילת העצמאות כחוק יסוד שיהיה לפרק המבוא לחוקה לישראל ונחוקק את חוק יסוד החקיקה בכדי למסד את מדינת ישראל כמדינה יהודית ודמוקרטית.
— Naftali Bennett נפתלי בנט (@naftalibennett) October 21, 2026
“I want to be clear. We will repeal all the judicial coup laws immediately upon the convening of the Knesset,” Bennett wrote, detailing the laws he plans to cancel: changes to the composition of the Judicial Selection Committee, the Law on the Legal Advisor to the Government, the Law on the Military Advocate General, and the Communications Law. Bennett added that he intends to advance a broader constitutional initiative: “We will pass the Declaration of Independence as a Basic Law that will serve as the introductory chapter to Israel’s constitution, and we will enact the Basic Law: Legislation in order to establish the State of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state.”
1+The statement positions the repeal of the coalition’s judicial legislation as one of Bennett’s key campaign commitments ahead of the elections. However, the post did not detail what alternative arrangements Bennett proposes in the areas where laws would be repealed—particularly how the judicial selection system he seeks to advance would look.
Bennett’s current declaration is especially striking against the backdrop of positions he championed before serving as prime minister, when he was among the most prominent supporters of significant changes to the judicial system. In 2017, while serving as education minister and leading the Jewish Home party, Bennett worked with then-Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked to advance a constitutional plan centered on an override clause, designed to allow the Knesset to re-enact laws struck down by the Supreme Court.
In October 2017, Bennett attacked the Supreme Court’s intervention in Knesset and government decisions. “There are judges who have forgotten that there is a government in Jerusalem,” he said, making clear his intention to advance legislation limiting the High Court’s ability to strike down laws. Later that year, as part of advancing the Basic Law: Legislation, Bennett declared: “Today we are telling the High Court: ‘Not everything is justiciable.'” He added that the court strikes down government actions and laws too easily, and that the boundaries of authority among the branches of government needed to be redefined.
1+In 2019, when he led the New Right party alongside Shaked, judicial reform remained a central part of their campaign. Among the demands they presented was a change to the judicial selection system, aimed at increasing the influence of elected officials in the process.
The gap between these statements centers primarily on Bennett’s relationship to the current coalition’s judicial legislation. While he previously supported limiting the High Court’s powers and changing judicial appointments, he now pledges to repeal the laws the government has advanced in these areas. That said, this doesn’t represent blanket opposition to all changes in the judicial system. Bennett continues to support enacting the Basic Law: Legislation, which he also promoted in the past, but his current statement doesn’t present the mechanisms that would be included in it.
Yair Golan, leader of the Democrats party, was quick to respond to Bennett’s statement, welcoming his commitment to repeal the laws. At the same time, he placed an additional political demand regarding the composition of the next government. “Happy that my colleague Bennett has joined our commitment to repeal the regime coup laws and fortify democracy,” Golan wrote on X.
But he followed with a demand: “But there’s one more step: to commit not to sit with Netanyahu, Likud, or any of the parties in the massacre and draft-dodging coalition.” He closed his response with a jab at Bennett: “If you’re already walking our path, might as well go all the way.”