Overview
- The central campaign fight is whether ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) men must be conscripted into the Israel Defense Forces, a debate that has come to dominate voting decisions.
- Haredi parties Shas and United Torah Judaism say they will not join any government that does not pass laws exempting their community from service, making coalition formation conditional on exemptions.
- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly defended preserving the 'world of Torah' and opposed recent arrests of draft evaders, placing him at odds with a large portion of the electorate.
- Public pressure for equal service is strong, with polls showing broad majorities favoring drafting Haredim and estimates that roughly 80,000 men aged 18–24 are avoiding service, which critics say worsens IDF shortages and strains reservist families.
- The issue traces to a 2024 Supreme Court ruling ordering Haredi drafting and to a longer history of exemptions for full-time Torah study, and its political stakes reflect demographic trends that project significant Haredi growth and long-term fiscal and manpower impacts.