Panicked Netanyahu tries to flout election laws on polling day
Lagging in opinion polls and with early indications that Arab votes are significantly ahead on Israel’s 2013 exit polls, Israel’s under-pressure prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu was blocked by the electoral committee from holding a press conference mid-polling.
In a fast-moving exchange, Netanyahu’s Likud party gave approximately 30 minutes notice of the planned statement. The Zionist Union, which latest opinion polls place ahead of Likud by several seats, swiftly lodged a complaint which was upheld by the electoral committee.
Likud was given around 30 minutes to lodge an appeal.
Annoyed, but undeterred, Netanyahu took to Twitter to drum up support.
‘Arab droves’
It is Netanyahu’s obsession with perceived existential threats to Israel that has a third consecutive term as prime minister (a fourth in all) at risk. With opinion polls and public opinion clearly indicating that inequality, housing, cost of living and other socio-economic issues would decide this election, Bibi obdurately stuck to national security issues.
Even after final polls showed a clear gap opening, with Likud lagging the Zionist Union alliance, Netanyahu focused on denying Palestinians statehood on the eve of elections.
This fear-mongering continued into polling day, further highlighting his irrelevance.
Citing reports that Arab votes were significantly up on 2013 elections, Netanyahu posted a video to his Facebook page (below) urging right-wing supporters to get out and vote.
It is questionable whether Netanyahu’s Facebook video contravened electoral law, too.
The video also prompted a complaint, and a witty riposte (beneath), from the new umbrella political grouping, the Joint Arab-Jewish List.
Meanwhile, Palestinian media outlets are able to circumvent electoral law and urge Israeli-Arabs to support the Joint List.
And Naftali Bennett, the young leader of the religious Zionist party, Jewish Home, tried to infiltrate private WhatsApp groups to encourage votes in his direction.
The following Observer report gives a good analysis of how Netanyahu lost ground to rivals by focusing on national security issues, the perceived existential threat of which he has now become a caricature, while ignoring burning social and economic issues.
