2/10/2009

Done my Duty

I've now voted in the Israeli general election. The only other time I voted nationally was during the Prime Ministerial election of 2000, when Ariel Sharon defeated Ehud Barak in a landslide. I have never before voted in a Knesset election.
I brought the kids along to show them how it works. I remember going with my mother to the polls when she voted for Reagan over Carter at Northwestern Senior High School in Baltimore, MD.
At our polling station (about a block from our house), a group of activists from the Meimad-Green party were outside, canvassing for votes. MK (though probably not for long) Rabbi Michael Melchior was there, and I introduced my kids to him. I like Rav Melchior. I think he's a really good guy, and probably the best role model for what a rabbi's role in government can and, perhaps, ought to be. He's also the closest thing that Israel has to a UK-style Chief Rabbi.
I didn't vote for him (ED from RBS - don't worry!), but I want my kids to see him as a true role model. Unfortunately, he asked my older son whether he's familiar with two Israeli kids' TV-show characters (can't remember the names, something like Izzik and Gizzik). We don't have a TV, and my kids was totally confused (I was, too, honestly). Whatever. A noble attempt to establish rapport with a 4-year-old, but sort of an anticlimactic.
The older 2 kids got to put the envelopes into the ballot box, which made them feel part of the process.
I've been hearing about a lot of people who had been considering voting for a satellite right-wing party, but who switched back to Likud in recent days out of concern that Likud would lose its lead. I would not be surprised if the Likud outperforms all expectations as a result, but that may just be wishful thinking.

UPDATE: Apparently, I was not the only one to notice Rav Melchior in Modiin (link).

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