With the runoff mayoral race approaching, scheduled for Tuesday, 5 Kislev, Jerusalem mayoral hopeful Ofer Berkowitz announced that his opponent, Moshe Leon, who is backed by Shas and Degel Hatorah, does not have the support of Agudas Yisrael. He told Kikar Shabbos News that he remains hopeful in the race, adding he believes he will enjoy the support of Gerrer and other chassidic courts.
Berkowitz explains that Elkin took many of the religious community’s votes in round one, but in round two, he thinks there will be a change as there will not be a scare campaign against the chareidim. He explains the chareidim are an integral part of the city and he will work to increase chareidi voter turnout.
Berkowitz added anyone who checks his record can verify he was never anti-chareidi, but he has fought to maintain the religious status quo in the city, which he plans to continue if elected. He feels trying to label him “anti-chareidi” is demagoguery.
He insists, as mayor, he will safeguard the religious status quo for both sides. Regarding the Peleg Yerushalmi, he states he is not negotiating with the party for its support. He calls on all those who voted Elkin and Deutsch in the first round to support him. He adds that those wishing to see Degel Hatorah chairman MK Moshe Gafne and Shas party chairman Minister Aryeh Deri run the capital, then they should vote for Moshe Leon.
YWN published an article prior to the election, where Berkowitz promised to end “Chareidi extortion” in Jerusalem, if elected.
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
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16 Responses
to vote for Leon is a vote for corruption and power brokers who worship money. What is the alternative? to vote for Berkovitch is a vote for the non religious, but then again, Barkat was a decent mayor even though he is non religious!
To vote for Leon is to heed the instruction of Rav Chaim Kanievsky shlita, -the biggest talmid chochom alive. According to The Chinuch 495, anyone who doesn’t heed his instructions will have to give din, for it is the the great Pillar that the whole Torah leans upon.
I thus disagree with Mr L. Kugel.
@Kugel- Are you nuts? A vote for Berkovitch means a vote for pride parades, a tacit endorsement of chillul shabbos, and placing the reigns of power into the hands of someone who doesn’t see or understand the value of the dvar Hashem. What kind of gibberish is that? Barkat was a good mayor in the sense that he would’ve been a good mayor to run NY, not the city that is the seat of holiness in the world.
#1Every Single secularist, reform ,etc.
is cheering on your words
you already made your agenda clear from previous posts
While it is true that Leon not best character that’s what happens in politics
however indeed
Barkat nor Olmert nor Kollek the best of choices and still Berkovitz is worse possibly far worse
Until this campaign he was and Remains A leader Among All those that we recognize whose sole goal is desecrate desanctify the city in Every Way
Sample:
obviously he moderated his image for the sake of campaign
he was Still only one of the of the candidates to March in the”%&*%”
Which even Barkat never did!
sweet
What if Berkowitz
is an existential threat
to all that wrote against what I said:
In the elections previous when Barkat ran against Porush; the Charadim did NOT vote for Porush! In the elections in Beit Shemesh, the charadim did NOT vote for Abutbul! Why?
Because just as when you are looking for a doctor, you choose a good doctor who is secular over a religious doctor who is less talented; so also, when you need some one to run the city, you choose a person who can do the job correctly and not a corrupt person who favors his buddies and passes money to his prized institutions.
If you want to hand your brains over to those who say otherwise, that is your decision, but don’t believe all the BS that is put out to make you vote for Lion.
luckshun kugel: I agree. It looks like Berkowitz is probably the less bad choice. But in any event, no matter who is elected, I wish him much hatzlacha.
LG,
To Correct what you wrote.
In Beit Shemesh the vast majority of Charedim who voted did vote for Abutbul.
Unfortunately, a smaller proportion made a Chillul Hashem and voted against the Gedolim
Lukshen,Yagel What’s new
Jerusalem is a holy city for most of us maybe not for you people
Furthermore the mayor of Jerusalem Has been and will be its face to the world
there’s a cosmic difference Between that and small town which had an incompetent mayor for a decade
And no one should believe those who claim the mayor just about taking care of Sanitation and the like
One has to be very boxed or willfully treacherous to pretend Otherwise
the intangibles
And the atmosphere will matter far more than the tangible
For Israel
the median is the message and therefore a mayor Is never just a city manager
Will be interesting to see what happens because the word in the street certainly is that the Chassidishe tzibbur is going to back Berkowitz. The reasons for this differ but anti-Gafni and anti-Deri outbursts are very common. Until the haredi camp gets together the frum community will continue to lose out.
Toi – The ‘pride parades’ will continue no matter who is elected mayor. It is beyond the power of City Hall to stop them or they would have been stopped long ago. Let’s remember that even when Luplianski was mayor there were ‘pride parades’ – and public chillul Shabbat as well.
Yes, I like the fact that Leon is shomer torah umitzvot and yes I think that that may have a marginal detrimental impact on the religious status quo in Jerusalem though (let’s remember that any coalition of Berkowitz will also have to include a large number of D”L, Chard”al and Charedi council-members, so the difference between the two in this regard, if any, will likely be slight). But in other matters, including matters of great religious significance such as corruption, the potential for problems seems much greater under Leon.
Jerusalem observer,Let’s hope they will remember there is Someone Above who keeps cheshbon
and you’re wrong
Yagel Libi
” I like the fact that Leon is shomer torah umitzvot and yes I think that that may have a marginal detrimental impact”
Thanks for being so forthright!
Besides the fact that a Psak of Reb Chaim SHLITA abd Reb Gershon SHLITA should be enough – I disagree that all of Agudas Yisroel is voting for Berkowitz!!!!
Barakat was not a bad mayor but u could tell that the city was “mayored” by someone not Frum
Berkowitz had a history (that he ow wished to hide) of backing many changes to make Yerushalaim moresecular has VeShalom so why would anyoen Frum vote for him even if he can run the city better (I don’t know where that comes from and anyway NOONE mentiomned anything bad about Leon’s administrative, etc skills so I guess he is OK and has been on the council for years)
I don’t know where the abouve people who wrote otherwise get their information from (and I am proud Yerushalmit who is gong to vote for LEON!!!)
Yagel Libi
hmmmm
” I like the fact that Leon is shomer torah umitzvot and yes I think that that may have a marginal detrimental impact”
your honest opinion or a Freudian slip
If you are only American (or chutznik), ignore Israeli politics Its not worth the breath.