(VICTORY SPEECH IN EXTENDED ARTICLE) 3:15AM IL: It is not yet official but the chareidi community of Yerushalayim is already aware that the mayoral election has gone to the opponent, Nir Barkat, who for the past five years occupied an opposition seat in 1 Safra Square, Jerusalem City Hall. If one word was needed to describe the loss – it would have to be “disunity”.
The mainstream media is already reporting “due to conflict with Gerrer Chassidim, the race went to Barkat”.
Final numbers will not be available for sometime, but the Porush for Mayor campaign is beginning to understand that the unwillingness of the frum community to unite around Meir Porush has taken its toll.
In the Chen Hotel in the Bayit Vegan neighborhood of the capital, Barkat for Mayor supporters are beginning to celebrate, realizing the numbers are not final but they do understand that with 264 of 707 polling stations counted, a victory is all but certain. While it is not a majority of stations, statisticians report enough of the votes have been counted to determine Barkat is the victor.
Barkat made a statement moments ago, promising to “lead Jerusalem to the place it needs to go”.
Elsewhere in the municipal elections:
a. Shas leader Eli Yishai applauded his party’s success, taking the election in four key areas. Shas now stands at the helm of Bet Shemesh, Rechasim, Emanuel, and Elad.
b. Toldos Aaron officials in Bet Shemesh report that information that chassidim voted in the municipal election is untrue.
c. Voter turnout in Arab municipalities about 75%.
d. With 75% of votes counted in the Tel Aviv race, incumbent Ron Huldai leads by 10%.
e. Beersheva’s incumbent Yaakov Turner, who has served for 10 years, has been unseated.
f. In Sderot, David Buskila has taken the race.
g. In Kfar Saba, it appears the incumbent remains in office.
h. A runoff election appears likely in Ashkelon as the candidates failed to pass the 40% minimum required to declare victory.
i. Lasri leads by 7% in Ashdod.
UPDATE 3:58AM IL: At about 3:40am, Nir Barkat decided to make his victory address. Ministry of Interior officials report Barkat earned 53% of the vote against Meir Porush’s 37%. Reshet Bet Radio reports that Gerrer Chassidim gave their votes to Barkat due to the conflict with Porush, giving him the race.
Chareidi analysts earlier in the night stated that if Porush loses, it will not be because of the secular vote, but because of the frum vote that went to the opposition.
Barkat made his victory address moments ago from his campaign headquarters in the Chen Hotel in Bayit Vegan, which some say is ironic since it too is a predominately frum area of the capital.
Barkat’s Remarks as transcribed by the YWN Israel News Bureau:
“Sehechiyanu V’Higiyanu” that we arrived at this moment. Tonight, Jerusalem Won! Tonight, Israel won! Tonight, the Jewish People won! Tonight, we proved there is someone who protects and takes care of Jerusalem, its values, and residents…
My dear family and supporters, I am proud and emotional that I stand here tonight to speak with you, here in Jerusalem, the City of King David, not far from the burial site of IDF soldiers (Mt. Herzl) and the leaders of our nation, as well as the place where we remember the Holocaust (Yad Vashem)…
The accomplishment goes to everyone who loves the special city, left and right, religious and not, all kind of kippot, srugot, black and whatever, to new immigrants and the veteran residents of generations…
We are looking for that which we have in common. The city has a heart and soul and those who understand realize what I am saying. Tonight is dedicated to all those who live in Jerusalem and the many compelled to leave and wish to return. To the dreamers and those who dare to hope for change, for a better tomorrow…
The race is over and beginning today, later in the morning, I will be the mayor of all residents of Jerusalem, those who voted for me and those who did not. Those who voted and those who decided not to cast their ballot.
My bracha to Meir Porush and his team, as well as Arkadi Gaydamak and Dan Biron and all those who sought a place on the city council. The time is now for cooperation towards building a better city. To the chareidi community, the city is yours as well as mine. My dear friends, we must work together. There is room for all of us. If there is not room for all of us, there is no room for anyone…
I pledge to open the city to all those who wish to live here with Ahavas Chinam, side-by-side with one another…
No official statement has been released by Meir Porush at the time of this report.
Analysts begin to question just how deep the chasm is between the chareidi factions and how will it impact the general election for prime minister and Knesset in the February election. It is no secret that in United Torah Judaism, there is no lack of tension between the Degel and Agudah factions.
(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)
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22 Responses
I think it’s extremely disrespectful to say something like this about Ger, the grand rebbe shlit”a of Ger is a kodosh v’tohor, and if he decided that this is what’s to be done, this gets done, to such a far extent that even “tzadik gozer v’hakodosh boruch hu mikayem”, and whoever says or writes any negative things about the Ger rebbe shlit”a or his chasiddim, is PLAYING WITH FIRE! And no, I’m not a chosid, but so much daa’s I have B”H. Be careful what you write or say!
wait… it’s disrespectful to say the truth if Ger voted for a chiloni who’s campaign is to “take back jerusalem” from the so-called charedi oppressors because Porush’s payos aren’t long enough?
With all due respect to our rabanim it was clear to anyone involved here what the intentions of the gerrer chasidim were.A personal fight between litzman and porush isn’t enough reason to hand the election over to a secular jew especially when were talking about jerusalem. the gerrer should only hope that this guy does no harm for chareidim cuz if yes their future is doomed!
#2 you are one hundred percent right!
We have to remind ourselves that these elections are all in the hands of Hashem. He gave Nir Barkat the mayoralship.
So, we can lay blame on Ger, litzman,or whomever, but, ultimately, it is all up to Him.
so chorbon habayith was also all up to him so why blame sinath chinam?what happened in yerushalayim is disgusting,period.no excuses,to elect a chiloni known anti charedi over any charedi is despicable.
historicaly the worst enemies of the jews are the jews, not obama
As I said on this issue in the previous article.
His speech seems from the heart, and he will go out of his way for the chareidim. Especially since ger voted for him. I think this was a brilliant move by ger. (Although it might seem to some that there was pirud in the ger position, it now seems that there will be more achdus between ALL yidden.
I just returned from Eretz Yisroel… I am not shocked about this outcome..I’ve never seen such a polarized race before.. In the Chareidi neighborhoods the Porush signs were everywhere..bli guzma, some blocks had 25-50 signs up..whilst in the rest of the City all the signs were Barkat. There was very little done to persude the swing voters for Porush….in the States the candidates dont focus havily in the solid red and blue states…it is the questionable/undecideds that they go after.
Our people are our own worst enemies.This is true of Americans as well as Torah-Jews. We MUST concentrate on our tefillos for Sholom.
“Chiloni”? The photo has him wearing a yarmulka and he began his statement with shehecheyanu
I have been told by many Isrealis while I was there recently that he is not anti charedi and does not want to divide Yerushalayim. He also has a chavrusa with someone but it slipped my mind who.
What qualifies some one to be a leader?
Does being a frum Jew qualify someone to be a political leader? It seems that lately, several different Frum candidates in cities worldwide have lost elections to not frum/jewish candidates.
Are we as frum Yidden doing the right or wrong thing. Are we obligated (in a way) to vote for a Jewish candidate or not?
For example; A certain candidate was running for office, he had recently done a few things which didnt rest with his a large portion of his constituents. He has seemed in the past like a steam roller, no one can stop him, its his way or the highway.
The sad truth is, you see, this “candidate” was running in both Yerushalayim and NYC. Both cities had candidates which were Frum Chashuvah Yidden, both candidates plastered the streets with their signs and slogans. Both candidates spent unprecedented amounts of money on their campaigns.
Both candidates lost.
The way it seems is that the people forgot what they were running for. Their minds were sidetracked with dreams of glory rather then the glory of the king of kings. Political sidings were made with the intention of getting elected rather then the intention of serving their constituents.
Made the one Above have mercy on us and lead us in the proper derech.
I agree with Shlepper. I think he’ll be good for Jerusalem.
Had I lived in Jlm, I would have voted Porush – not with the heart, but out of a loyalty to daas Torah, but now it’s over, I don’t believe that Barkat will shake up the status quo too much.
At the end of the day, there’s not that many chilonim interested in Jlm anymore
Ger has once again won to bad for all us.
# 17 dont be fooled this is a loss
who cares if Barkat won? as long as the city council has a frum majority, then his hands are tied. besides, at least the charadim can’t be blamed for things going wrong in the city.
I dont think much will change.
Secular Jew Defeats Ultra-Orthodox Jew in Jerusalem’s Mayoral Race By
By ISABEL KERSHNER
Published: November 11, 2008
JERUSALEM — A secular, hawkish entrepreneur on Tuesday defeated an ultra-Orthodox, equally hawkish member of Parliament in a hotly contested race for mayor of Jerusalem, according to results announced early Wednesday.
Times Topics: Israel
As usual, the election was largely boycotted by Palestinians, who comprise a third of the city’s population.
The secular entrepreneur, Nir Barkat, 49, a self-made high-tech millionaire, has raised expectations in Jerusalem, the troubled capital and a city highly symbolic and holy to Muslims, Christians and Jews. He has pledged to revitalize and significantly develop the city, Israel’s poorest, and has said he would like to multiply the number of tourists visiting here from one or two million a year to 10 million.
Some left-leaning Jerusalem residents have questioned how likely he is to achieve such goals without a political solution for the divided city that would involve the kind of compromises that Mr. Barkat rejects.
Mr. Barkat won 52 percent of the vote, according to official results based on count of all ballots cast. He defeated Meir Porush, 54, a former deputy mayor and deputy minister of housing from the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party, by nine percentage points.
“This victory,” Mr. Barkat said in a predawn victory speech, “belongs to all those who love and hold dear this special, amazing city, the eternal capital of the Jewish people.”
Jerusalem will now have a secular local leader after five years under Uri Lupolianski, Jerusalem’s first ultra-Orthodox mayor. Mr. Barkat lost to Mr. Lupolianski in the 2003 mayoral race and sat in opposition on the city council for a few years.
Local elections took place in all the major cities and rural councils across Israel on Tuesday, but the voting in Jerusalem as always had extra significance, even though it is the central government that will ultimately decide the city’s political fate in negotiations with the Palestinians.
Jerusalem is Israel’s largest city, and its most complex and sensitive, both politically and religiously.
Of the population of 740,000, the Palestinian third is made up mostly of Muslims who live in the east of the city — territory that Israel conquered, then annexed, as a result of the 1967 war. The Palestinians demand those areas as the capital of their future state.
“There is not one example in the world,” Mr. Barkat told reporters recently, “where a divided city works.”
Palestinians in East Jerusalem have consistently boycotted city elections in the belief that participating would be tantamount to recognizing Israeli sovereignty. The bulk of Palestinian voters stayed away this time, as well.
As a result, the election was fought among Jewish voters, along the Orthodox-secular divide.
A third to a half of the Jews in Jerusalem are ultra-Orthodox, disciplined voters bent on strengthening their own institutions and their hold on political power.
Although tensions between religious secular Jews were kept relatively in check during Mr. Lupolianski’s tenure, he was widely perceived as a weak and generally ineffective mayor.
The city faces significant problems. Expensive housing and a lack of jobs have led tens of thousands of Jewish residents to leave in recent years. Streets are clogged with traffic and are dirty. A recent survey found Jerusalem ranked last of Israel’s major cities in livability.
In the struggle for meager resources, secular activists portrayed this election as a crucial, possibly last chance to win back city hall from the ultra-Orthodox.
Both of the leading candidates campaigned on platforms of building affordable housing and trying to stem the exodus from the city. Another mayoral candidate, Arcadi Gaydamak, a Russian-born billionaire who barely speaks Hebrew and is on trial in absentia in Paris on charges that include arms trafficking and money laundering, won less than 4 percent of the vote.
» A version of this article appeared in print on November 12, 2008, on page A14 of the New York edition.
the New York Times
The Torah clearly states, afilu omer lecho al yemin shehu semol. Even if the chochom tells you that what you think is wrong, he tells you that this is right, you are supposed to listen to that chochom. Members of other chasidic sects do not have to listen to the Gerrer Rebbe Shlita but Gerrer chasidim do. The Rebbe Shlita doesn’t have a personal agenda. His agenda is Klal Yisroel. The rift happened because Porush basically broke agreements that were made by all gedolim. Too bad that only the Gerrer Rebbe Shlita had the fortitude to face up to Porush on this.
Is it so hard for all the frummies to get together, make a kiddush hashem, and decide what has to be done. Then go back to the beis medrash, stop spending hours on convincing people to vote, and the Torah learnt during election time, will do a lot better than yeshiva bochrim running around.
Bet Shemesh and Shas.
After years of Vaknin non leadership, I hope that Bet Shemesh can finally get some shuls, schools…
whoever wins, klal yisroel loses until our tefila “shehyaavir memshales zadon min ha’artez” is mekuyam.