Israel election 2021: Netanyahu woos Arab-Israeli vote amid Joint List split

The prime minister’s overtures to the community could pay off as voting begins in crucial election, voters tell Rosie Scammell in Umm Al Fahm

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara cast their ballots at a polling station in Jerusalem. EPA

Chairman of Israel's New Hope party Gideon Saar and his wife Geula vote with their children at a polling station in the coastal city of Tel Avivi. EPA

Officials instruct a man as he votes from a car at a special mobile polling station for Israelis in quarantine or infected with Covid-19. Israelis were voting on Tuesday, March 23 in the country's fourth general election in less than two years. Reuters

Covid-19 patient Rahamim Havura votes in Israel's parliamentary election inside an intensive care ward for coronavirus patients at Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv. AP

Israeli centrist former television anchor Yair Lapid, the prime minister's main challenger, and his wife Lihi cast their votes at a polling station in Tel Aviv. AFP

Naftali Bennett, leader of the right wing 'New Right' Yamina party, waves as he walks with his wife Gilat at a polling station where they voted in the city of Raanana. AFP

Ayman Odeh, leader of Israel's predominantly Arab Joint List and the Hadash party, casts his ballot in Haifa. AFP

An Israeli Arab woman casts her ballot in the Bedouin town of Rahat. AFP

A man prepares to cast his ballot at a special mobile polling station near a beach in Ashdod. Reuters

A voter wearing casts his ballot inside a special temporary polling station tent, set up for people quarantined for potential exposure to coronavirus, in Tel Aviv. Bloomberg

An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man arrives to vote in Israel's parliamentary election, at a polling station in Bnei Brak. AP

A mobile voting booth is seen at a special polling station for Israelis in quarantine or infected with the coronavirus disease. Reuters

A man votes with his children in Tel Aviv on the fourth national election in two years. AFP

Sara Netanyahu, wife of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, prays at the Western Wall, ahead of national elections in the Old City of Jerusalem. AP

A boy looks up at a Blue and White party election campaign banner depicting its leader, Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz, alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in Bnei Brak. Reuters

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu greets supporters as he tours the Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem. AFP

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu eats dessert from a stall as he tours the Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem. AFP

Gideon Saar, head of Israel's New Hope party, works at the party's headquarters in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv. AFP

“We are all with you,” reads an Arabic billboard bearing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s picture, outside the city of Umm Al Fahm, signalling the intense campaign for votes following a split among Arab parties ahead of Tuesday’s election.

The right-wing premier's unusual push for Arab supporters seeks to profit from divisions among the Joint List, which has been weakened in the polls after the Ra'am party broke away from the Arab-led alliance.

“Our campaign is really challenging, to convince people about the importance of supporting us and of voting,” said Yousef Jabareen, a Joint List legislator.

After soaring to win 15 seats in the election last March, the Joint List is slated to pick up just eight places in the 120-seat parliament on Tuesday. It is Israel's fourth election in two years.

The decline follows the decision by Mansour Abbas, leader of the Islamist party Ra’am, to run alone after suggesting he would be open to co-operating with Mr Netanyahu. The move proved deeply controversial for the Joint List, which vows it can best serve its constituents by being active in parliament from the opposition.

But some Arab voters, who make up 20 per cent of the population, believe ties to the government will provide funds to tackle poverty and a rise in violent crime within their community.

“They want to see something really changing their lives for the better, and they say maybe his (Mr Abbas’) way will make the difference, so more and more people are going to vote for him,” said lawyer Tawfiq Jabareen, an Umm Al Fahm resident who is not closely related to the politician of the same name.

Israel’s third-largest Arab city, Umm Al Fahm has been the site of weekly protests against gun violence and the perceived inaction of authorities. So far this year 22 Arab-Israelis have been shot dead, according to the Abraham Initiatives organisation which promotes equality.

Samah Salaime, a Palestinian feminist activist in Israel, said the Arab community is grappling with how to “survive this wave of crime”.

With community concerns focusing on violence, poverty and housing, she said the rights of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza are not being discussed in this electoral campaign.

“All the priorities now that force themselves onto the agenda - we are in survival mode - we are talking about the basics,” said Mrs Salaime, who heads the communications and development office of Wahat El Salam/Neve Shalom, a co-operative village founded by Arab and Jewish Israelis.

While voters like Mr Jabareen remain committed to the Joint List, the lawyer said some of his siblings are backing Ra’am and he hopes the party will win parliamentary seats.

“I want him to succeed,” he said of Mr Abbas. “I also want to see this experience, what he will do. Maybe he will change our lives, I don’t know.”

Ra’am is forecast to pass the electoral threshold and pick up four seats, according to final television polls published Friday, which could prove decisive in determining the next government.

While Mr Netanyahu's Likud is set to emerge as the largest party, polling at 30 to 32 seats, he needs the support of smaller parties to form a governing majority of 61 seats.

It is doubtful that Ra’am would be welcomed into a Likud-led government, given no Arab party has joined a coalition before and Mr Netanyahu relies on right-wing and ultra-Orthodox alliances which are unlikely to govern alongside Mr Abbas.

The Ra’am leader could, however, prop up a minority government led by the incumbent, or alternatively support a coalition seeking to oust Mr Netanyahu.

One path to victory for Israel’s longest-serving leader would be for Likud to snatch seats away from Arab-led parties, hence the premier’s unprecedented campaign among the Arab community.

The overture could lead to Likud gaining two more seats, according to the Abraham Initiatives, though Joint List politician Mr Jabareen remained hopeful his constituents would not be drawn in by Mr Netanyahu.

“His appeal in this way is kind of like an insult to the Arab community and to the Arab voters, because we know that he’s personally been in power for 12 years,” he said. “So he cannot come today as if he’s a new candidate and ask for our votes.”

While the Joint List is expected to emerge from the election as a weakened alliance, Mrs Salaime noted its internal split has exposed the diversity among the Arab community to the broader public.

“It’s time for the Israeli audience to see that the Palestinians inside Israel have differences,” she said. “They are not the same.”

Art installation encourages Israelis to vote