Following allegations that hundreds of Kretchnif (קרעטשניף) Chassidim accepted payment to vote for Nissim Slomiansky in the Bayit HaYehudi primary elections, it appears the chassidus will be under investigation. The Ometz organization is pushing police to act on the information available, and probe the case as the serious allegations into voter fraud demand.

Readers should understand the allegations do not pertain to the general election, but to the Bayit HaYehudi internal primary election, the election which determined the candidate’s position on the party roster. To the surprise of most, Nissim Slomiansky, who represents the ousted old guard earned the highest slot. He now faces allegations of voter fraud, allegations which he adamantly denies.

Ometz maintains that the information available indicates that money was given by party leader Naftali Bennett or someone acting on his behalf. Bennett has publically denied any connection with illegal activities, announcing he suspected something was wrong and hired a private detective to straighten out affairs surrounding the primary election. Bennett adds that “thousands of votes” were tossed, votes that were “suspicious” to remove any possibility of voter fraud.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)