Israeli Elections 2015

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Photo: Haim Zach/GPO)

Netanyahu’s race-baiting was long-planned, not a ‘lapse in judgement’

The prime minister’s Election Day warning that ‘Arabs are coming out in droves to the polls’ was the culmination of months of focus groups and a clear-eyed strategy from Likud operatives, a new Channel 2 report reveals. By Mitchell Plitnick Controversial comments by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about heavy voter turnout in Israel’s Arab sector…

By +972 Magazine January 27, 2016

Prime Minister Netanyahu at the first Knesset session following the 2015 elections (photo: Haim Tzach, Government Press Office)

What to expect from Netanyahu’s fourth government

The new government, which could survive longer than most observers expect, intends to resume the implementation of the Prawer Plan, aimed to force the Bedouin Palestinian population in the “unrecognized villages” into a narrow territory. Benjamin Netanyahu’s fourth government was sworn in in the nick of time. Due to last-minute controversies over cabinet positions, President Reuven Rivlin…

By Noam Sheizaf May 15, 2015

Benjamin Netanyahu gives a victory speech on election night, March 18, 2015. (Photo: +972 Magazine)

To win, the Israeli left needs to learn from Bibi

Like Netanyahu, who harped on Iran, ISIS, and the Arab citizens voting in droves, the left has a bunch of fears that it can stoke and channel in its favor. All it needs to take its gloves off and go down to business. By Elie Podeh The Knesset election results have put the left on…

By +972 Magazine May 9, 2015

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Likud MK Miri Regev (Photo by Activestills.org)

More female MKs doesn’t mean a more feminist Knesset

The fact that the 20th Knesset will have a record number of female MKs does not mean they will necessarily advance women’s rights. Some of them, in fact, may end up doing just the opposite. By Samah Salaime Now that the winds have died down completely and I have finished writing all my commentary on…

By +972 Magazine April 1, 2015

Mahmoud Abbas speaks at the World Economic Forum on the Middle East and North Africa 2013. (photo: World Economic Forum / Benedikt von Loebell)

Sorry Israeli leftists, I’ve got no sympathy for you

Half of Israelis are ‘stuck’ with a prime minister they didn’t want. All Palestinians are stuck with a president who lost his democratic mandate years ago. By Talal Jabari I have spoken to quite a few Israelis following Benjamin Netanyahu’s latest win at the polls earlier this month who talk about their disappointment in his…

By +972 Magazine April 1, 2015

Zionist Camp supporters listen to exit poll results, Tel Aviv, March 17, 2015. (Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

Beyond Netanyahu: On the collapse of the so-called Left

Many in the Israeli Left saw the recent election defeat as a danger to democracy. But if the Left wants to win elections, it needs to let go of its anti-Mizrahi fear-mongering and racism. by Elad Ben Elul (translated by Joshua Tartakovsky) In order to understand the outcome of the recent elections in Israel, one…

By Haokets March 27, 2015

Social-TV Post election survey

[VID] Street Talk: Why did the Left fall short on election day?

Following the results of the elections for the 20th Knesset, Social TV takes a street survey and asks residents of Tel Aviv to explain the unexpected results, and why they think the left-wing parties failed yet again.

By Social TV March 23, 2015

Israelis cheer at a right-wing election rally in Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square, March 15, 2015. (Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

What’s an Ashkenazi leftist to do?

One Ashkenazi leftist’s view of the post-election rumblings of class warfare between the “State of Tel Aviv” and the mainly Mizrahi periphery. Last Tuesday’s election saw Likud’s traditional popular base — Mizrahim in the poor, development towns and cities of the Negev and Galilee, and poor neighborhoods and suburbs of the central region — vote for…

By Larry Derfner March 23, 2015

A Palestinian from the West Bank village of Bil'in looks out at the Modi'in Illit settlement bloc. (photo: Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

It’s time for a one-state solution

There is no use convincing the Jewish public to support the two-state solution, especially when over 500,000 settlers live beyond the Green Line and there is no guarantee that a Palestinian state will not be the source of terror against Israelis. The only way forward is to grant full equality to all. By Yonatan Amir…

By +972 Magazine March 23, 2015

Labor chairman Isaac Herzog (Photo by Activestills.org)

Why did we forget about Herzog’s anti-Arab campaign?

While commentators will be talking about Netanyahu’s anti-Arab race-baiting for a long time, his opponent’s anti-Arab campaign tactics never stirred up too much controversy. There were many reasons why Benjamin Netanyahu galloped to victory in last week’s election. His opponent, Isaac Herzog, was viewed by many as disconnected, elitist and lacking an alternative vision for…

By Edo Konrad March 22, 2015

An Israeli votes in the 2015 election, March 17, 2015. (photo: Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

Israelis elected a non-democracy

Obama must understand that these elections were more than just a referendum on Netanyahu — they were a referendum on Israel’s character, and Israelis did not vote for democratic ideals. Many on the center-left in Israel are still trying to wrap their head around Netanyahu’s victory. They simply cannot grasp that most Israelis really want…

By Mairav Zonszein March 22, 2015

"Wall". A small family's hut in Qalqilia where the wall goes through (Hamde Abu Rahma, from the book)

The most important word missing from these elections

If the Left wants to win elections, it cannot continue to hide its true principles. It must speak clearly and openly about the most pressing issue facing Israel: the occupation. By Amir Segal Isaac Herzog will not be Israel’s next prime minister, and Benjamin Netanyahu overwhelmingly won this election. Now is the time when leftists…

By +972 Magazine March 22, 2015

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stands on a tractor during a campaign event in the city of Ra'anana in central Israel, February 11, 2015. (Photo by Activestills.org)

How the anti-Netanyahu daily actually brought him to power

Enhance a fear of Iran. Promote a privatization policy. Encourage the view that Israel has no peace partner. If you do all that, don’t expect the voters to reject the person who represents this very worldview. Daniel Dor (translated by Sol Salbe) I recently heard some people saying that we now have the proof that…

By +972 Magazine March 21, 2015