Degel HaTorah Prepares For Elections: New Candidates Join Gafni And Maklev For Kickoff Meeting

Degel HaTorah Prepares For Elections: New Candidates Join Gafni And Maklev For Kickoff Meeting

The Degel HaTorah movement has begun preparing for elections, with the kickoff meeting held Monday evening at the movement’s headquarters in Bnei Brak. The meeting was attended by veteran representatives Moshe Gafni and Uri Maklev, who are ending their Knesset tenures, along with Degel HaTorah’s new chairman MK Yaakov Asher, MK Yitzchak Pindrus, Moshe Rosenthal, […]

Degel HaTorah’s Ousted Veterans Join New Candidates for First Election Strategy Meeting

Days after a major shakeup within Degel HaTorah that saw longtime MKs Moshe Gafni and Uri Maklev replaced on the party’s Knesset slate, the veteran representatives sat alongside their successors Monday night for the first time as the party began preparations for the upcoming election. The meeting, held at Degel HaTorah headquarters in Bnei Brak, was billed as a kickoff and organizational session ahead of the election. Both the newly selected candidates and the veteran lawmakers who were removed from the slate participated. The gathering followed several turbulent days for the Litvishe party after the removal of Gafni and Maklev, longtime fixtures in chareidi politics. The manner in which their replacement was handled drew considerable criticism and generated an internal storm within the party. In an official Degel HaTorah announcement distributed by spokesman Yaakov Morgenbesser, who in recent years served as Gafni’s spokesman, the party notably listed its new candidates first, followed by its veteran representatives. According to the announcement, those attending included the party’s new chairman, MK Yaakov Asher, who is also expected to serve as chairman of United Torah Judaism; MK Yitzchok Pindrus; Moshe Rosenthal; Yehuda Weissfish; Dovid Zaltz; Dovid Ochana; and Eliyahu Baruchi. Also present were Gafni, who continues to hold the title of chairman of the Degel HaTorah movement; Maklev, who remains a member of the party leadership; Yitzchok Reich; Menachem Shapiro, director of the party’s municipal department; and Degel HaTorah director Moshe Schiffman. The meeting focused on preparations for Israel’s 26th Knesset elections and on strategies for mobilizing Degel HaTorah supporters to turn out on Election Day. The participants also discussed efforts to maximize support for the joint United Torah Judaism slate, which is expected to include Degel HaTorah together with Agudas Yisroel and the new party established by MK Meir Porush. The gathering marked the first time since the controversial reshuffling of the Degel HaTorah slate that Gafni and Maklev appeared together in an official party setting with the candidates selected to lead the party into the next election. {Matzav.com}