The stall remains, the vote has changed: what is happening in the right-wing stronghold?
Between the cafes, the butcher shop, and the fish store: a tour of the Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem with various voices — from right-wing voters who do not hide their criticism of the current government, to parliament members hoping for a turnaround.
Between the cafes, the butcher shop, and the fish store, from Itamar Ben Gvir and Benjamin Netanyahu to Mansour Abbas: a tour of the Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem with various voices — from right-wing voters who do not hide their criticism of the current government, to parliament members hoping for a turnaround. This is the first article in our election series.
Israel Ariel was a young man when the Yom Kippur War broke out. In those days, he rented a room in a family home in the Silwan neighborhood of Jerusalem, and when he rushed to leave for reserve duty, the elderly Arab landlady hugged him warmly and blessed him. Ariel tears up when he tells this story, even though 53 years have passed. This story is much more than a nostalgic memory.
It is connected to life in Israel in 2026. Israel after October 6, 1973, Israel after October 7, 2023. This story is one of the reasons why Ariel intends to vote in the upcoming elections, for the first time in his life, for Ra'am. In the end, he says, we are all human beings and we need to and can live here together.
"In the previous elections, I voted for the Meretz party and was disappointed," says Ariel. "Even in the surplus vote agreement, they were not willing to go with the Arabs. I planned to vote for the Democrats, but the moment Yoav Segalovitz announced that he was joining Mansour Abbas, I decided that I was switching to him. It is time for normal Jews and normal Arabs to run the country. The connection between these two makes me believe that perhaps there is still a future for this country."
Protest vote
The market stalls, as always, are colorful and fragrant. Ripe figs, sweet grapes, mangoes in intense orange. But the merchants' calls are absent, the market is less cheerful than in days past, and from every side, stickers commemorating the victims of the massacre and the war are visible. This is evidence that we are all still licking the wounds of the never-ending war, and the upcoming elections will also revolve, in many ways, around October 7.
Only one large political sign is carried above the open market. A yellow heart connects the name "Jerusalem" to the name of the Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir. Saxophonist Eliyahu Zaken, playing at the entrance to the market, remembers Ben Gvir as a young lawyer. When Zaken talks about the minister, it is evident that he likes the man, but is not sure he will vote for him again.
"In the past, I voted Likud, my parents are Likudniks," he says. "But something happened to Likud. First of all, October 7 happened on their watch, they cannot shake that off. The pension is not big, the cost of living only rises. People cried and begged for help, and it did not arrive. It reminds me of the Yom Kippur War. At the time, the abandonment was in Mapai; three years ago it repeated itself in Likud. My hesitation is difficult, even though I do not see an alternative."
Sasson Aviv, whose butcher shop is nearby, is even more critical: "Everyone is corrupt, right and left. I am usually right-wing, but out of lack of choice, I am casting a protest vote. I do not like Bibi. He has responsibility for October 7 and for everything that is happening in the country. How can it be that everyone is guilty, and only the head of government is not?"
Hopes for a turnaround
Chava Amsalem, who immigrated from France 31 years ago, is firm in her intention to vote Likud. "When you live here, you understand coexistence differently. Only Netanyahu has the charisma I am looking for in a leader. I cannot manage to blame him for what happened on October 7 — whoever was under him did not pass him all the information."
At the same time, Dr. Nahum Bagleiter, a retired surgeon sitting in a cafe, remains optimistic. "There is a chance for a turnaround," he says. "The polls show that in all likelihood there will be a different government here after the elections, and I believe that the picture of the situation they present will materialize, unless a tectonic event happens."
