Zionist Union

political alliance, Israel

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

July 21, 2026

Quick Summary

The Zionist Union was a political alliance in Israel formed in 2015 by the Israel Labour Party and the Hatnua party. The alliance aimed to present a united front against the Likud party, with Isaac Herzog leading the Labour Party and Tzipi Livni heading Hatnua. While polls initially suggested a close race, the Zionist Union ultimately won 24 seats in the Knesset, finishing second to Likud. The alliance dissolved in 2018 when Avi Gabbay became the leader of the Labour Party. The Israel Labour Party, founded in 1968, has historically been a dominant force in Israeli politics, advocating for social-democratic policies and generally supporting concessions to Palestinians in peace negotiations. Yisrael Beiteinu, another political party, was founded in 1999 and focuses on issues such as immigration and Israeli settlements, often taking a non-conciliatory stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

2 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Israel Labour Party
Decline in influence
The new alliance, named the Zionist Union, looked poised to perform well in the polls, with analysts predicting an extremely close race between it and the other front-runner, Likud. The results, however, showed that the Zionist Union won only 24 seats, finishing second to Likud, which garnered 30 seats. Still,…
Read More
The new alliance, named the Zionist Union, looked poised to perform well in the polls, with analysts predicting an extremely close race between it and the other front-runner, Likud. The results, however, showed that the Zionist Union won only 24 seats, finishing second to Likud, which garnered 30 seats. Still,…
Read More

Tzipi Livni
Persistence and founding of Hatnua
…led Hatnua to form the Zionist Union, a centre-left alliance, with the Israel Labour Party. The new alliance appeared to present a formidable challenge to Netanyahu’s Likud, with analysts predicting that it would be a very close race between the two. The results, however, showed that the Zionist Union trailed…
Read More
…led Hatnua to form the Zionist Union, a centre-left alliance, with the Israel Labour Party. The new alliance appeared to present a formidable challenge to Netanyahu’s Likud, with analysts predicting that it would be a very close race between the two. The results, however, showed that the Zionist Union trailed…
Read More

Benjamin Netanyahu
Second stint as prime minister (2009–21)
…Netanyahu’s Likud party and the Zionist Union, a center-left alliance comprising the Labour Party and Hatnua. When results were released, it became clear that Netanyahu and Likud had won the most Knesset seats—30, followed by the Zionist Union, with 24—in a surprisingly decisive victory.
Read More
…Netanyahu’s Likud party and the Zionist Union, a center-left alliance comprising the Labour Party and Hatnua. When results were released, it became clear that Netanyahu and Likud had won the most Knesset seats—30, followed by the Zionist Union, with 24—in a surprisingly decisive victory.
Read More