(UTJ)
A joint electoral list comprised of two mainly Ashkenazi ultra-Orthodox political parties, Agudat Israel and Degel HaTorah. In its first election in 1992, the joint list won four seats in the 13th Knesset. It replicated this success in 1996 and participated in the Likud-led coalition formed by Benjamin Netanyahu but declined to take any cabinet portfolios. UTJ won five seats in the 15th Knesset (1999) and five seats in the 16th Knesset (2003). It agreed to join the reconstituted governing coalition formed by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on 1 January 2005 but declined to hold any cabinet portfolios. UTJ won six seats in the March 2006 elections for the 17th Knesset.
See also Religion.
Historical Dictionary of Israel. Bernard Reich David H. Goldberg. Edited by Jon Woronoff..