Haredi turnout high in Likud primary, amid fears they won’t vote for party in general election
Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"Many ultra-Orthodox voters cast ballots for the first time in a Likud primary on Monday, sparking alarm among some activists in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s party who claimed the new members were influencing the makeup of a slate that they do not intend to support in the October 27 general election.“I asked them: ‘Is there any chance you’ll vote for Likud (in October)?’ They said, ‘No, we’re voting for United Torah Judaism or Shas, but we want to come and [have] influence,'” Likud Central Committee member Eli Zilka told The Times of Israel, standing outside a polling station in the Jerusalem suburb of Beit Shemesh.Zilka said Haredi turnout was exceptionally high in both Beit Shemesh and Jerusalem.While…
Many ultra-Orthodox voters participated in the Likud primary, raising concerns among some party activists that these new members, who intend to vote for Haredi parties in the general election, were unduly influencing the Likud slate. A Likud Central Committee member, Eli Zilka, stated, "I asked them: 'Is there any chance you'll vote for Likud (in October)?' They said, 'No, we're voting for United Torah Judaism or Shas, but we want to come and [have] influence.'" Approximately 7,000 of Likud's 140,000 members are Haredi, and their participation, alongside efforts from a far-right party aide, significantly impacted the primary results. While some Haredi voters claimed they sought "purer politics" or felt their own parties weren't listening, others reportedly received payment to vote for specific candidates.
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