Recent polls reveal that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s Kadima Party is down to 41 Knesset seats, while the Labor and the Likud parties remain stable. The rightwing religious parties, the National Religious Party (NRP) and National Union, merged thereby gaining eight seats. The religious Shas party dropped one seat from the last poll, from 11 to 10 and United Torah Judaism (a rightwing party) and the leftist Meretz both were at five seats.