If you have friends or family in Israel, then it’s pretty likely your Facebook feed was filled last week with pictures (or selfies) of people casting their votes in the 20th Israeli election.
There’s a reason people, myself included, felt the need to post a picture – something I’ve never seen done in a Canadian election – and it’s because voting in Israel is an amazing experience.
Anyone can come to Israel for a visit, pray at the Kotel, enjoy a shwarma, or ride a camel, but only Israeli citizens can cast their ballots and help determine their country’s fate. It’s not only a privilege, it’s a responsibility, and one I try not to take lightly.
Having made aliyah in October 2012, this was actually my second time voting in Israeli national elections. Still, this year’s election felt just as significant and important as the last time I voted. (I have even started my own tradition of eating a new fruit before voting in order to make a Shehechiyanu prayer on the special day. This year I opted for a guava; last time it was papaya.)
But despite the jubilation of voting, election season in Israel can be extremely divisive, especially in this campaign where both sides had nearly identical rhetoric. Likud’s campaign posters proclaimed “It’s us or them,” while the Zionist Union opted for “It’s us or him.”
Basically, it was someone against someone else.
Also, in Israel, unlike Canada, it is quite accepted and common for people to ask each other who they voted for. This can cause further divisions – consider that in the final election results, 12 parties received at least one per cent of the vote, meaning the odds that two people voted for the same party were not great.
Yet, somehow, you could still feel a sense of unity. Since Election Day is one of the few national holidays that isn’t Shabbat or a religious holiday, it’s considered to be like a Sunday, a day off that can be enjoyed outdoors, on the beach, or by having a BBQ (which we of course called a Bibi-Q).
In that regard, Election Day in Israel is similar to Yom Ha’atzmaut, and I spent part of the day at the beach with a small group of friends. Among us, there were voters for five different parties, and of course we knew whom each person voted for. Last election, I played baseball with a group of Americans who also represented voters of at least four parties.
The day after Election Day, I happened to be in a small falafel shop in Jerusalem. In front of me, waiting in line like the rest of us, was Zionist Union MK Hilik Bar. He seemed engrossed in conversation on his phone, and he took his falafel to go (so I didn’t have time for a selfie). Still, seeing him there reminded me how small Israel really is, and how much the lives of all Israelis are interconnected. We may have different views, but at the end of the day we all want what’s best for our country.
I will end with a story. A couple of weeks ago, my roommates and I needed some painting done in our apartment. Our landlord hired a painter who showed up about an hour early with no tools. After having to leave to get tools and a ladder, he asked me if he could borrow a pair of pants because he didn’t want to get his pair dirty.
That’s one of my favourite things about this country. We all argue for weeks about pretty much everything, but then we borrow each other’s pants. Because, in all honesty, we have no other country, and at the end of the day we all want to see it thrive and succeed.
Joseph Schwartz, a Toronto native, made aliyah in 2012, mostly for the entertainment. He is currently working in marketing and finishing a master’s degree in political communications.
