Manar Al Mahmood

PS 472
10 March, 2020
The Joint List

The New York Times. 4 March, 2020. “Israel's Right had a Good Election. So Did Israeli

Arabs. That May Be No Coincidence.”

The article starts by stating the results of Israel’s elections, and that the Joint List will now hold

at least 15 seats in Parliament, which is a record for an Arab-led political faction. The article

claims that the results, for the Israeli right and the Joint List, are in fact intertwined. Netanyahu’s

disenfranchisement of Arab citizens by pursuing the “deal of the century” is exactly what

prompted “a previously apathetic Arab Israeli electorate” to vote. The article goes into detail

about voter turnout, quoting several Arab Israelis including a social worker who stated that

Netanyahu’s racist campaign pushed them to vote. The article lists other reasons such as the

appeal of the Joint List’s leader, Ayman Odeh, who united a diverse range of ideologies within

the alliance; grassroots mobilization such as “get-out-to-vote” campaign which targeted women;

the dwindling popularity of Jewish leftist parties; and the hard-line policies of the main centrist

party, Blue and White. Netanyahu argued that any coalition featuring Arabs is illegitimate. The

article concludes with Louis Fishman’s speculations — a professor at Brooklyn College who

studies the Joint List — about whether the Joint List’s victory is a phenomenon or whether it will

transform into a new party for the Israeli left. This article elaborates on the reasons for the

historical victory, while also including a unique perspective by adding Dr. Fishman’s analysis.

The Guardian. 4 March, 2020. “Israel’s Arab Parties Make Historic Gains as Election

Support Surges.”

This article by the Guardian also credits the backlash to Netanyahu’s racist campaign for this

victory, stating that Arab candidates capitalized on the anger towards “the peace plan” — which
includes a clause about stripping Arab Israeli’s of their citizenship. The article explains that 21%

of the population are Arab mostly descended from Palestinians who remained after the creation

of Israel in 1948. It also states that turnout among Arabs has surged to 64.7 percent. However, no

Arab party has ever served in a governing coalition due to ideological divides. With Netanyahu’s

alliance falling short to secure a majority, there is possibility of a fourth election. The article

concludes by stating that last April, Arab candidates claimed 10 seats in parliament, which

became 13 after they unified. Today they hold 15 seats, which is also due to the doubling support

from progressive Jewish Israelis who are disappointed with traditionally leftwing Jewish

candidates whose influence has plummeted. The perspective of the Guardian is similar to the

New York Times in its neutrality, but it is brief in its reporting.

Haaretz. 4 March, 2020 “‘An Earthquake’: How Israel’s Arabs Achieved Their Historic

Election Win.”

As an Israeli news outlet, Haaretz’s article is more detailed in its reporting. Not only does it state

the all-time record for the Joint List, but for Arabs in general, stating that 17 Arabs will serve in

the parliament. It includes 3 Arabic-speaking Druze lawmakers from Likud, Kahol Lavan, and

Yisrael Beiteinu. It also takes note of the number of Arab women that is also record-breaking,

with four women in the Joint List’s top 15 spots — more than most Jewish parties — as well as

the first hijab-wearing woman ever to serve in parliament. The article lists two main factors for

the gains: dramatic increase in voter turnout within the Arab community; and plummeting

support for Jewish parties among Arab voters. The article includes analysis by Thabet Abu Rass

— co-director of the Abraham Initiatives, a nonprofit that promotes a shared society for Israel’s

Jewish and Arab citizens. He attribute’s Netanyahu’s “ongoing attacks on Arab citizens” for the

increased turnout. The article also explains what is at stake for Israel’s Arabs if Trump’s peace
plan was to be implemented. The article uses maps to highlight the towns and cities that will be

affected and graphs showing how Arab Israelis voted in the last three elections. The plan

involves ten Arab towns and cities where 350,000 Arab citizens live, and where voter turnout

was especially high this election. Other factors include unprecedented boost from local

government leaders calling on residents to vote for the Joint List, women given prominent places

on the ticket, and leftwing Jewish voters — mostly Meretz supporters.

Conclusion

In conclusion, to understand the Joint List’s historic victory, I would recommend both the New

York Times and the Haaretz articles. Both are unbiased and elaborative in their reporting.

Personally, I am not very familiar with Israel’s domestic politics, so I found the New York Times

article to be sufficiently informative on the topic. However, because I am interested in learning

more, I would read Haaretz for the detailed reporting. It is an Israeli news outlet with Israeli

readers, so the details regarding the different parties, members, and cities are significant. For

example, instead of stating that 15 seats will be held by the Joint List, it states that 14 seats will

be held by Arabs from the Joint List — there is one Jewish member in the Hadash faction.

Finally, the articles give similar factors that contributed to the Joint List’s new record. The New

York Times quotes Israeli Arab voters for their reasoning, while Haaretz goes more in depth with

each factor.