The fruits of their Labor
Op-ed: The new Labor list boasts a number of outstanding women, unlike the paltry effort by Likud; but will the young and dynamic list of candidates be enought to propel Isaac Herzog into the PM's office?
Even those women who do not intend to vote Labor cannot fail to be happy about the results of the primary for the most feminist party to be standing at the upcoming elections.
Every woman in Israel should be pleased about the three outstanding women - four with Tzipi Livni – who appear in the top ten of the list, or the fact that a total of seven women are place the first 25 spots, and that's before taking into account the two slots for women that Livni has been promised.
The Labor Party has certainly returned the lost honor of women, who are missing on the list that seeks to keep the ruling Likud party in power.
The choice of Shelly Yachimovich as number two on the Labor list after she lost the leadership in race against current chairman Isaac Herzog is a fair and mature choice of by party members. Yachimovich took her punishment in that race, but giving her second place after Herzog was necessary. There is no doubt that she has behaved wisely since Livni joined the top of the list, whether she liked it or not, and her complete and unequivocal support for the party leader contributed in no small measure to her winning the top spot that was up for grabs. It turns out that Labor voters are sick of internal scheming, something that Yachimovich had clearly understood.
The election of Stav Shaffir to second place immediately after Yachimovich is nothing short of exhilarating. Without the party mechanism, without hacks and activists and other paraphernalia that surrounds the old guard. This is further proof of the capabilities of this young Knesset member, who schooled the wily and experienced members of the Finance Committee, and proved that all it takes is to keep your eyes open and the interests of the public close to your heart.
Shaffir has also proved to everyone that the Knesset is a workplace. It is hard work, and then some. And she worked, and how she worked. She once said it took her weeks to study the budget and understand its components.
I believe we can count on both hands, and still have fingers left, the number of Knesset members who came to the same conclusion. In Labor there are also Merav Michaeli, a MK who came to the Knesset to give her utmost, and Itzik Shmuly, another diligent and efficient lawmaker. These young people, who all made it into the top ten, are a credit to the party which they joined two years ago and are unlikely to desert.
Omer Barlev is further evidence of public astuteness and proof that they are not hostages to stigma. It turns out that Herzog and Livni had one a security expert under their very noses the whole time. So what is the difference between the Barlev, who was the commander of the IDF's most elite Sayeret Matkal unit, and Netanyahu, who never reached this rank? Why is the latter deemed "Mr. Security", while the former, who outranked him, is discounted?
Herzog is right: The list is a good one, brave and feisty. It seems that this primary has dispelled some preconceived notions of who we want to represent us in parliament - and Labor voters at least want them young, hard-working and dedicated.
It's possible that the list is too Ashkenazi, and some will say too left-wing. But when is every detail perfect? At least this list does not hide behind what it's not, says this me, take it or leave it.
For now Herzog can savor his accomplishments – the union with Livni is apparently paying off, and the party list for elections includes worthy and interesting choices.
There's only one small question: Will any of this will help him on March 17? In other words, will he persuade the Israeli public that he can manage the affairs of state, based on how well he has been able to manage the affairs of the party?
