President Reuven and First Lady Nechama Rivlin on Tuesday morning, 26 Adar, cast their votes in the election for the 20th Knesset, at the polling station situated in the Yefe Nof School in Jerusalem. After voting, the President called on all the citizens of Israel to vote.

The President said, “This is a very meaningful morning for all of us. Even as I am voting for the 18th time in my life, I am deeply moved. It is a day of celebration of true democracy, and it is with this emotion we have come to the polling station this morning. I still remember well, my parents excitedly going out to vote for the first Knesset of the State of Israel, dressed in their finest clothes, on their way to take their destiny in their own hands and decide the future of the state as they saw it. To my mind, that excitement should accompany us all today, each and every citizen.”

The President called on all the citizens to vote. He said, “I urge you all, go and vote. We are voting today for all our sakes; for our young and for our old, for the residents around the Gaza Strip; and for the residents on the northern border. Take your destiny in your own hands, and that of the state – it is not only a great privilege but a great obligation. Don’t leave the decision in the hands of others. The State of Israel faces many challenges – social, economic, and security challenges. Today, we have the chance to impact the way we live, and we must not give up on that.”

First Lady Nechama Rivlin commented as she placed her vote in the ballot box, that out of all the opportunities she had had to vote as an Israeli citizen, this is without doubt the most emotional for her.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)