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🇮🇱 Israel /Elections & Politics

Arab parties move to reestablish Joint List without Ra’am after disagreements with Abbas

From Jerusalem Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Three major Arab parties in Israel, Hadash, Ta’al, and Balad, will reestablish the Joint List without the Ra’am Party, led by MK Mansour Abbas.
  • This decision follows months of stalled negotiations and disagreements over the parties' stances.
  • The parties aim to maximize seats by running together, but the door remains open for Ra’am to join before the elections, scheduled by October 27.

Three of the four main Arab parties in Israel, Hadash, Ta’al, and Balad, have decided to move forward with reestablishing the Joint List electoral slate without the Ra’am Party, led by MK Mansour Abbas. This move signals a setback for efforts to unite all major Arab political factions under a single banner ahead of the upcoming elections, scheduled for no later than October 27.

The door was still open for Ra’am to join.

— HadashStatement from Hadash indicating Ra'am's potential inclusion in the Joint List.

The decision was announced by Hadash, which stated that the "door was still open for Ra’am to join" the coalition. Negotiations between the four parties had been ongoing since last summer, with polls indicating that a unified list would secure more seats than separate runs. However, disagreements surfaced during recent discussions on Sunday and Tuesday regarding the parties' respective stances.

A Hadash representative explained that the three parties could no longer wait for Ra’am's agreement, necessitating their progression without Abbas. "Our responsibility to the public requires us to move forward and not remain in a state of waiting and uncertainty,” the party stated. "Therefore, we will work to establish the broadest possible Joint List, while leaving the door open for Ra’am to join the process at any time.”

Our responsibility to the public requires us to move forward and not remain in a state of waiting and uncertainty.

— HadashHadash explaining the rationale for proceeding with the Joint List without Ra'am.

Despite political reservations, Hadash, Ta’al, and Balad accepted a framework for a technical electoral arrangement, emphasizing their commitment to unity within the Arab public and the goal of increasing its political strength. They acknowledged that a final agreement with Ra’am had not been reached despite their efforts and flexibility. The parties indicated that even if they run on separate lists, they would pursue surplus vote agreements and maintain a substantive political dialogue to boost voter turnout and potentially replace the current government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Therefore, we will work to establish the broadest possible Joint List, while leaving the door open for Ra’am to join the process at any time.

— HadashHadash reiterating the possibility of Ra'am joining the electoral alliance.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Jerusalem Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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