Aryeh Deri is Back… in Shas
Kikar Shabbat is reporting that Aryeh Deri, the former head of the Shas party will be returning to Shas.
A contract is being drawn up...
Polls Indicate Netanyahu Will Score in New Elections
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s call to disband the government and call for new elections may serve him well, if two public opinion polls published Thursday pan out.
Likud Lawmaker Aims to Block Rumored Comeback by Olmert
Likud Party lawmaker Tzipi Hotovely reportedly petitioned Israel's Central Elections Committee to prevent former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert from running for office.
Netanyahu Announces Early Elections In Israel
JERUSALEM – Now it’s official: Israel is going to the polls. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Tuesday that the elections for the 19th Knesset will be held early next year.
Aryeh Deri to Head Shas
Reports are indicating that Aryeh Deri will return as the head of the Shas party, while Eli Yishai will receive the senior government position,...
Likud Set to Approve Primary Elections Scheme, Barak Excluded
The method of the primaries for the Likud's Knesset list was drafted by the Likud's Constitutional Committee last night and is set to be approved by the party's Central Committee this evening in Ganei HaTa'aruchah in Tel Aviv. The scheme does not include the reserving of secure spots on the list - spots within the number of seats Likud is certain to win - for candidates chosen by Prime Minister and Party Chairman Benjamin Netanyahu. It was rumored that Netanyahu wanted such spots for Defense Minister Ehud Barak and possibly other members of Barak's Independence faction which broke off from Labor.
Israel’s Election Campaign Shifts Into High Gear
JERUSALEM – With the 18th Israeli Knesset dispersed and new national elections set for January 22, 2013, Israel’s various political factions began preparing for what is expected to be a brutal campaign to elect a new 120-seat parliament. Following the elections President Shimon Peres will ask a newly elected MK, presumably from the largest faction, to form the next government.
Weekly Israeli Poll Avg: Likud on Top with 28 Seats
Jeremy Saltan's combined weekly poll average from Oct 14-20 shows the Likud with 28 seats, down from the prior week's average of 29 seats, Kadima remains at 6, and Yisrael Beitenu is down to just about 13 seats.
Likud and Yisrael Beiteinu Join Forces
In a move that took everyone by surprise, including their own party members, Avigdor Liberman's Yisrael Beiteinu party and the Likud have joined forces ahead of the upcoming elections and will be running as a joint list.
Secret Ballot Could Determine Likud-Beiteinu Future
In an unexpected move, 10% of the Likud Central Committee members gathered enough signatures to demand a secret ballot on whether or not to run on a joint list with Yisrael Beiteinu.
The Russian and the Charmer
Both men are, above all else, pragmatic. They will defy logic and critics to shake up the political spectrum. Bibi has done it several times. A few months ago, polls guaranteed him a sure win if he called early elections. The announcements were made; dates were discussed and then, in the dead of night, he made a deal to unite with Kadima. No surprise to anyone, that deal fell apart rather quickly and Israel is once again on the path to elections.
Likud Approves ‘Biberman’ Deal, Polls Show Zero Gain
Netanyahu said that the decision to run together won't change the Likud, but it would allow the Likud to change the State of Israel. But the new joint list will receive only 42 seats in the next Knesset elections next January, a Channel 2 News poll found on Sunday. It means that the parties will retain their current power.
Video Chuckle: Israel’s Labor Party Central Committee
Israel's political party conventions make the Knesset seem polite and tame. At the Likud Central Committee convention the other day, the vote for PM Netanyahu's proposal for the Likud and Yisrael Beiteinu to run together in the upcoming election was conducted by a "show of hands" popular vote. Not the best way to hold a vote.
Likud Beitenu’s Political Juggernaut
TEL AVIV – Political pundits have long debated who is the real Benjamin Netanyahu. Is he a pragmatist handcuffed by his right-wing support base and fealty to his late father’s nationalist vision? Is he a true right-wing ideologue whose apparent concessions to Israeli-Palestinian peace are but feints?
PM Netanyahu Congratulates US President-Elect Obama
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu congratulated re-elected President Barack Obama.
American Voters In Israel Make Their Mark On Two Electoral Fronts
JERUSALEM – More than 100,000 American voters in Israel cast their ballots for a presidential candidate, with nearly 80,000 of them having submitted a ballot provided by iVoteIsrael, a local non-profit organization that spent the past few months aggressively encouraging American expatriates living in Israel to register and vote. The remaining registered voters cast their ballots via the absentee route.
Jewish Home Primaries Today, Vote for the Anglo
We may be in different parties, but Jeremy Gimpel is representative of the English-speaking community in Israel. His message represents the selfless Zionist commitment of the community in the political sphere. My hope is that all Anglos who are members of the Jewish Home should make sure they turn up at the polling station and support Jeremy Gimpel and help him get into the Knesset.
Some Likud MKs Explain Their Positions to Voters – in English
On Tuesday night, around 100 English speaking Likud members and supporters got to hear MK Tzipi Hotoveli, MK Gila Gamliel and Jerusalem City Council...
Likud Primaries: How to Vote?
So far, the only candidates that I am 100% certain about are from the list from Mattot Arim.
Jewish Home Party Primary Results In; ‘Anglo’ Jeremy Gimpel Comes in 9th
All but Smoliansky are allies of Naftali Bennett who trounced MK Zvulon Orlev to become the new chairman of the party last week.
Weekly Polls: Pre-Gaza Polls Give Right 66.5 Knesset Seats
The average of 2 polls published last week, Channel 2 and Jerusalem Post. The Post poll was conducted November 12-13 and the Channel 2 poll was published November 14.
Latest Israel Election Polls
The following poll result were reported on the Knesset TV Channel, after the Cease Fire announcement.
Labor Primaries on Thursday – and Shelly’s Blacklist
The Labor party, headed up by Shelly Yechimovitch, will be holding primaries on Thursday.
Nana10 reports that senior staffers in Yechimovitch's office have set up...
Results in from Labor Primaries
Labor party primary results are in, and Shelly Yechimovitch did not come out a winner.
First-Time Israeli Voters Going Right
This item in Hebrew from Israel's Channel 2/Mako informs us that:
49% of all first time voters define themselves as right-wing.
20% as center but right-leaning.
5% as...
Yechimovitch: I’ll Raise Taxes
According to a report on Israel Channel 10, Shelly Yechimovitch, the head of the Labor party, said that if she is appointed Minister of...
Clash on the Right: Eldad v. Feiglin
MK Aryeh Eldad (Strength to Israel) and Knesset candidate Moshe Feiglin (Likud) traded barbs today over ideological purity and compromise in politics.
Rivlin Offers to Trade Spots With a Female Candidate
Speaker of the Knesset Rueven Rivlin (Likud) said Wednesday that he would be willing to be moved lower on the joint Likud Yisrael Beitenu...
Amir Peretz, Formerly of Labor, Embraces Tzipi
Amir Peretz, former Histadrut union chief and former Defense Minister, is now a former member of the Avoda (Labor) party. He is moving over...
Rivlin: Knesset Must Regulate Politicians’ Ability to Switch Parties
Speaker of the Knesset Reuven Rivlin (Likud) criticized the practice of switching between parties by various Members of Knesset and Knesset candidates , calling...