Jack Khoury
Haaretz, Oct. 23, 2022
“… what have you done for us? Why should we vote for you? How can you help us? Sometimes we can answer, and sometimes the candidates themselves come to small home meetings. The important thing is to leave with a positive answer that on Election Day, they will go out and vote.”
Ten days to Election Day, the main challenge of the parties representing the Arab community remains getting their potential voters to the polls. According to internal surveys by Hadash-Ta’al, the United Arab List and Balad, the voting rate among Arabs is projected at 43-46 percent, with all three parties striving to reach a 50 percent target. Such a rate, they believe, will guarantee that they cross the electoral threshold of 3.25 percent of the vote and make it into Knesset.
Although the past two weeks have seen a certain rise in interest in the election among the Arab public, indifference is still palpable. The Arab street evinces no atmosphere of great competition between the parties, nor disputes among people as to whom to vote for. The three parties are currently focusing on home meetings and small rallies, with the main Target being not emphasizing their differences from one another, but persuading voters to get out and vote. On top of the pressure to cross the threshold, another challenge arose the weekend: Balad rejected Hadash-Ta’al’s offer of a leftover votes agreement, which lead to an exchange of recriminations between the party leaders and deepened their rift.
Poll data over the weekend indicated that 100,000-120,000 people will vote for Balad. These numbers may not be sufficient to cross the electoral threshold, and may even endanger the other two parties, should the general voting rate not rise, yet Balad refuses to yield. The party will launch a campaign this week claiming they are only a few thousand votes short of making it into the Knesset, meant to convey a message to its supporters that the mission is perfectly doable. Party Chairman Sami Abu Shehadeh declared in an interview to Ashams Radio on Friday that Balad currently stands at 2.5 percent of the vote, not far from the 3.25 percent it needs.
Yet Balad sources admit that unlike its two competing parties, UAL and Hadash-Ta’al, it lacks a hardcore electoral base. To UAL, for instance, the entire Negev and southern Triangle area are a base worth tens of thousands of votes, whereas Hadash-Ta’al considers the Nazereth area and the Beit Netofa localities, including Sakhnin and Arabeh, as a stronghold. Balad hopes that the Yafo, Lod and Ramleh areas will prove to be such a base, but the party is focused on seeking potential voters in any Arab or mixed municipality. This week, Abu Shehadeh intends to focus on his hometown of Yafo, as well as Lod and Ramle, as well as some Triangle locations. Balad sources noted that the party may not have a clear stronghold in any town, but the fact that Abu Shehadeh is from Yafo, and is very well-known in Lod and in Ramle, will give them an edge in those areas. … SOURCE