Israel Votes Smart….For a Change

Israel Votes Smart….For a Change

By Sherwin Pomerantz

On the day after election day in Israel what does the playing field look like now?  My take on this:

The election this year was of great concern to everyone which is why there was such a high turnout of voters.  67% of the electorate cast ballots, higher than previous recent numbers of 65% in 2009 and 63% if 2003 although still far short of the percentages in the early days of the state.

Prime Minister Netanyahu, who was expected to easily be re-elected will probably be asked to form the next government as his party received the most number of seats (31 of the120 member parliament) but far short of the 42 seats the Likud-Beitenu group had in the last Knesset.  My take on this is that the populace agrees that, at the moment, there is no one better suited to be Prime Minister at this difficult time in Israel’s history, but the voters were not prepared to give him a strong right wing influenced mandate.  Reducing his power but confirming his role can only be seen as a warning to be careful and not move too far to the right.

Yesh Atid, a new party on the scene headed by former TV anchor Yair Lapid, received the second largest number of seats at 19.  This definitely makes him a power broker regarding the composition of the next coalition.  He has some impressive people on his list including Rabbi Dov Lipman, an American born immigrant to Israel living in Beit Shemesh, who led the community’s rightful indignation against the harassment of female students at a religious school there by Chareidi (sometimes referred to as “ultra-Orthodox”) elements who were upset that the girls legs and arms were not completely covered as they walked to school.  In favor of some inclusion in the military and national service sectors by Chareidi citizens and a return to peace talks with the Palestinians, Lapid’s position clearly resonated with a large portion of the left of center population who are no longer impressed by former Kadima head Tzipi Livni (whose party this time captured just 6 seats).      

Labor, under the leadership of a less than charismatic Shelly Yachimovich, was next in line with 15 seats indicating that her campaign for social justice resonated with many people who also probably saw Labor as worthy of a vote, as the part somewhat represents the history of the state, given the many years that the party dominated the political scene in Israel.

The big disappointment was the Jewish Home party headed by Naftali Bennett, a high tech millionaire who entered politics on the platform of annexing large parts of Judea and Samaria where the bulk of Israelis live (i.e. Area C) and only then discussing with the Palestinians how best to manage the balance (i.e. Areas A & B).  Although for most of the campaign he was treated as somewhat of a rock star and seemed to be sweeping the country into his camp, at the end of the day a vote for Bennett was interpreted by many as the end of the peace process as it has been conceived and that might simply have been too much of a leap for many people.  He will have 11 seats in the next Knesset as will Shas, the Sephardi Chareidi party which has been part of every coalition for some years.

It would seem then that the country delivered a very direct message to its elected representatives as to where they think the political leadership should take us.  I interpret all of this as a statement that says we want strong leadership, a prime minister who knows how to protect Israel’s interests in a world that is becoming ever less friendly, and a coalition government that represents the interests of all the members of society so that a platform for constructive dialogue can be developed where the future of the state can be intelligently debated and discussed.

Netanyahu has an opportunity to actually craft a coalition that represents the different elements of the society and once in for all eliminates the over-arching influence of the religious right as represented by the religious parties.  If he is able to convince Yesh Atid, Labor and the Jewish Home parties to come into the government, that would give him 76 votes, more than enough to pass pretty much any legislation that comes to the floor of the Knesset. 

While, for sure, there are conflicting positions on how to deal with the Palestinian issue between the Jewish Home party for example and Yesh Atid, all three of these additional groups are led by young people with high aspirations for future leadership.  Lapid is 49, Bennett is 41 and Yachimovich is 52.  So my guess is that each of them understands that showing leadership and doing what is in the best interests of the country will probably stand them in good stead in future elections and, of course, they are all products of the social network generation which is strong on communication and compromise.

For the good and welfare of the future of the State of Israel, let’s hope I am correct.   And let’s also hope that Netanyahu understands that the vote on Tuesday did not give him a strong mandate to rule.  Obama misunderstood completely what his 1.1% over 50% margin of victory did not give him so we need to hope that Netanyahu won’t fall into the same trap of thinking that he is now the king.   The king is no longer kind, long live democracy!