Beit Shemesh Mayor Rabbi Moshe Abutbul will defend his post in less than two weeks as the city is heading to a reelection. Abutbul was interviewed by Kikar Shabbos, addressing a number of current events issues. Following are excerpts from that interview addressing the upcoming mayoral race in that city.

Mayor Abutbul explains:

Regarding the election in Beit Shemesh I received 17,500 votes and at the end of the day, the questionable votes according to police amount to 36. Referring to the court decisions ordering a second election, you don’t change the glow of victory of 36 votes. The Supreme Court was unwilling to hear from us or from witnesses.

Was the court influenced by the media?

Without a question! One must be an angel not to hear the antagonistic media and what they say about us, ref erring to us as cancer.

The mayor said he does not know who was really behind the forged votes but he knows his victory was achieved without those votes being tallied into the victory.

In the last election Sephardi Rabbonim accused you of selling out to Ashkenazim. Can you promise you will not repeat this?

Before making promises I must explain. Shas in Beit Shemesh is a third of the size of the Ashkenazi parties. They have six seats and Shas two plus. Hence, one can say I sold out but in actuality, the Ashkenazim sold the city to the Sephardim the moment they placed the city in Sephardi hands. It is normal for the other side to find an attentive ear as a result.

Will you beat Eli Cohen?

As a chareidi Jew I cannot use the word beat. I can say that I believe that with Siyata Dishmaya HKBH will lead us to victory.

How large a victory?

I am doing my utmost to at least double the previous victory.

Do you believe you can sit alongside Eli Cohen in the City Council?

What interests me is the good of the city. This is what it is about. Eli Cohen does not have much of a chance of winning.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)