ISRAEL'S NATIONAL AND MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS OF 26 JULY 1955

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP91T01172R000300070003-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 7
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 20, 2006
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: July 7, 1955
• Content Type: MEMO

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OCI No. 3412/55 CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
Copy No. 3 OFFICE OF CURRENT INTELLIC
7..7.. 7955
7
TO: Deputy Director (Intelligence)
SUBJECT: Israel's National and Muni
26 July 1955
1. Offices to be filled:
All members of the third Knesset, Israel's 120-member uni-
cameral parliament, will be elected for a four-year term. The
president of Israel, after consultation with the newly elected
representatives of the parliamentary parties in the third
Knesset, will call on one of the Knesset members to form a gov-
ernment. This member, as prime minister, will select 16 cabi-
net ministers.
Town and village councils throughout the country also will
be elected for a four-year term.
2. Distribution of Knesset seats:
Nineteen parties will enter candidates in the 1955 elec-
tions as compared to 17 in the 1951 elections. Knesset seats
are distributed in proportion to the votes cast for the party
lists. A list of candidates may be.submitted by any group of
750 persons eligible to vote. Party lists must now receive 2.
15ercent.:of the vote, y instead of 1 percent as '.in 1951., i.in order
to be included in the distribution of Knesset seats.
Party lists obtaining 1.:percent .,or more "of' the vote in the
1951 elections are shown below:
Party Strength in the second Knesset:
Knesset Seats Present
Right
(1951 e ect ons) eating
Herut (extreme right)
8
8
Mizrachi (religious)
2
2
Agudath Israel (orthodox religious-
non-Zionist)
3
3
Poalei Agudath Israel (labor group
of Agudath Israel--non-Zionist)
2
2
State Dept. review completed
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Right (Continued)
Knesset Seats Present
(1951 elections) east rig
Sephardim (Oriental communities)
2
2
Israeli Association of Yemenites
1
1
General Zionists (right of center)
Moderate labor and Left of canter
20
20
Hapoel Hamizrachi (religious labor)
8
8
Israel Arab Democrats (Arab party)
3
3
Progress and Work (Arab
party)
1
1
Farmers and Development
(Arab part)
.
1
1
Progressive
4
4
Mapai
Left
45
47*
Achdut Haavoda
4**
Mapam
7
Maki (Israeli Communist Party--non-
Zionist)
3. Party representation in present cabinet:
Until late June 1955 a coalition cabinet composed of the Ma-
pai,General Zionist,'P ogressive, and Hapoel Hamizrachi-Mizrachi
parties governed the country under Prime Minister Moshe Sharett.
This government was formed on 24 January 1954f61loWing the res-
ignation on?-,7-Dbcember"1953^of'DaVid Ben-Gurion, who had been
prime minister since the establishmen.t:.of.the state in 1948. :Of
the 16 cabinet -members, 9 were from the Mapai: party,-?4,were,,ofrom
the General Zionist Party, 2 were from the Hapoel Hamizrachi-
Mizrachi party, and l was from the Progressive Party.
A new coalition government omitting the General Zionist
Party was formed under Prime Minister Sharett on 29 June as the
result of a government crisis. This cabinet includes the Mapai,
Hapoel Hamizrachi-Mizrachi, and Progressive parties. The four
cabinet posts held by the General Zionists in the previous
*Gained two seats from right splinter faction of Mapam.
**Right splinter faction seceded from Mapam, taking four seats.
***Left splinter faction seceded from Mapam, taking two seats,
and formed Left Socialist Party. This party was dissolved on
29 October 1954, and members merged with the Communist Party on
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government have been distributed among the other ministers--
Mapai taking three of the 'posts- and Hapoel Hamizr.achi-Mizra-
chi taking one.
Sharett forced the resignation of the previous cabinet
in order to expel the General Zionists after they had refused
to support him on a confidence vote over a prominent court case.
Sharett stated that the General Zionists had violated the basic
rule of collective cabinet responsibility. Although a General
Zionist leader said that his party was not anxious to break up
the coalition, he commented that there could not be any real
coalition government during the next four weeks with all the
parties campaigning against each other.
4. Principal issues:
Domestic issues in the election campaign are likely to in=clude the defense of the country's borders, government controls
on the economy and the activities of the Histadrut, electoral
reforms, settlement of the land and absorption of immigrants,
and wage rates. Foreign issues are likely to reflect Israeli
fear of the country's isolation in a hostile Arab area and the
need for defense guarantees from the West.
Mapai will stand on its record of having improved the coun-
try's economic position including control of inflation, improv-
ing standards of living, wage stabilization linked to cost-of-
living index, increase in industrial production, and settlement
of immigrants. Ben-Gurion is spearheading the party's campaign
on the issues of electoral reform--he wants to eliminate propor-
tional representation and substitute regional representation--
and on the establishment of a pioneering front to settle the
land. On the issue of border security, the Mapai party has been
fortified by the return of Ben-Gurion as minister of defense and
by the recent military "retaliation" against Egyptian forces in
the Gaza area.
The General Zionist Party will campaign mainly on economic
issues. This party attracts middle-class professionals and
skilled workers and will press for liberalization in the state's
economy and fewer government controls, limitation of the Hista-
drut's activities, and wage adjustments for professionals. The
General Zionists agree to the need for some kind of electoral
reform but not to an extent which would permit the Mapai party
to obtain a majority in any elections. They support a policy
of border retaliation and a foreign policy almost identical to
that -of the- Mapai party.
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The extreme nationalist parties will stress the issue of
border security. On this issue, Mapai fears it may lose votes
to the leftist Achdut Haavoda, and the General Zionists also
fear the extreme rightist party, Herut, may take some of their
voters.
5. Principal factors influencing the outcome:
The Histadrut (General Federation of Jewish Labor) election
of 8 May, the first in six years, is considered a "dress rehearsal"
for the Knesset elections since about one third of the voters
are members of this labor organization. Histadrut's central-
ized organization of workers and its ownership of many basic
industrial enterprises give it a powerful position and its atti-
tude on economic issues is generally the one adopted by the gov-
ernment.
The results of the Histadrut election indicate that at
least for the present the local political scene can be charac-
terized as stable and that the struggle for votes in the July
elections will be between Mapai and the General Zionists. The
Arab-Israeli border issue is a significant factor in the elec-
tions. Widespread sentiment that the government is not ade-
quately protecting Israeli settlers and property in the border
regions may weaken Mapai's strength at the polls.
6. Main political parties:
Mapai, a Zionist socialist labor party which has held the
dominant position in the government since the state was estab-
lished in 1948. Its domestic objective of a democratic state
with a planned economy is to be achieved by the development of
the co-operative and workers movements--particularly the power-
ful labor organization, Histadrut--in co-ordination with private
enterprise. The party's foreign policy at present is pro-
Western.
In the May elections of Histadrut, in which most of the po-
litical parties participated,Mapai retained its majority posi-
tion. With Ben-Gurion again in the leading role as a colorful
vote-getter, Mapai's chances are good for maintaining its 39
percent plurality, and possibly increasing it.
The Mapai party draws its support from rural co-operative
communities and from urban industrial workers. It also attracts
a good percentage of the "floating vote" of new immigrants not
as yet attached to one of the political parties.
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The General Zionists, a liberal party, made sweeping gains
in the ID51 ional elections and later became the second larg-
est party in the government. While it stands for private enter-.
prise, the party does not aim to dismantle the extensive social-
ist structure of the economy. Its foreign policy is distinctly
pro-Western and it has close connections with the Zionists Or-
ganization of America. The General Zionist Party made a good
showing in the Histadrut elections, the first time the party
entered these elections, and will probably maintain its 16 per-
cent of the popular vote.
The strength of the General Zionist Party is concentrated
in urban areas, and its party membership includes almost all of
Israel's small class of wealthy industrialists, owners of citrus
groves, and merchants as well as many professional people and
office employees.
Achdut Haavoda, a leftist socialist labor party, was cre-
ated in August 1954. Many of its domestic policies are similar
to those of Mapai,but it has criticized Mapai for not taking
more aggressive, action on the Arab-Israeli border issue. Its
foreign policy calls for Israel's "independence" from Western
domination and includes the promotion of closer relations with
the USSR. The party received 14 percent of the vote in the
Histadrut elections, the second highest, and Mapai obtained 58
percent. The party attracts the young element in the country
but still does not have full-fledged party organization.
Mapam is an extreme left-wing Zionist socialist labor party
which lost 8 seats out of 15 since the 1951 elections, Its for-
eign policy opposes any aid which would make Israel subservient
to the West and favors closer relations with the USSR. Mapam
made a poor showing in the Histadrut elections and is not likely
to gain any additional seats in the national c.ections.
The bulk of the membership of the Achdut Haavoda and Mapam
parties come from the communal settlements (Kibbutzim) and the
parties also enjoy the support of some of the' urban industrial
workers.
Maki, the Israeli Communist Party, follows an anti-Zionist
policy w- ich hinders its success among the Jewish population.
Party membership was estimated at 4,000 in 1954 and may have
been increased by the merging of a splinter group from Mapam in
October 1954. Approximately one third of its members are Arabs.
The party's domestic policy calls for a workers' government,
higher wages, and equal rights for Arabs. It opposes Israel's
inclusion in any anti-Soviet pact and calls for closer ties with
the USSR. The party increased its strength in the Histadrut
elections and is likely to retain its 5 percent of the popular
vote.
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Herut, an extreme right Zionist party, is a political out-
growth of a former illegal terrorist group. Members are fanat-
ical nationalists who advocate the incorporation of all Palestine
into Israel. This party appears to be losing strength due to
the defections of several of its leaders, but the party is ex-
pected to wage a vigorous campaign.
Hapoel Hamizrachi-Mizrachi, one of the two principal re-
ligious parties, is a recent merger of two long-split Orthodox
Zionist parties--a realignment mainly effected for the elections.
While its two elements demand that the development of the state
be based on the Torah, they have differences in economic ideol-
ogy. The foreign policy of this party is pro-Western.
Agudat Israel-Paolei Agudat, the other religious party, is
an anti-Zionist movement. The party is almost entirely preoc-
cupied with its struggle to extend religious authority in a
preponderantly secular state,
Progressive Party, a liberal group which split from the
Genera Zionist Party in 1948, advocates nonidentification with
labor, capital, or co-operatives. Its foreign policy is pro-
Western. Having increased its strength in the Histadrut elec-
tions, the party is optimistic that it will obtain more than
its 3 percent of the popular vote.
In addition, there are several small Arab parties, sponsored
by the larger political parties, as well as a miscellaneous
group of small parties. Some of these reflect personal aspira-
tions, while others seek to exploit the community bonds of new
immigrants.
7. Outstanding personalities:
The top five personalities in the Mapai party list are
David Ben-Gurion, minister of defense; Moshe Sharett, prime min-
ister and minister for foreign affairs; Joseph Sprinzak, speaker
of the Knesset; Golda Myerson, minister of labor; and Levi
Eshkol, minister of finance. If Ben-Gurion wishes to return as
prime minister, there is little doubt that Mapai would give him
the post.
The prominent leaders in the General Zionist Party are
Peretz Bernstein, Israel Rokach, Joseph Berlin and Joseph Sapir.
They all were cabinet ministers until the formation on 29 June
of the new coalition government which excluded the General
Zionists.
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In the Achdut Haavoda party, Yigal Alon, an outstanding of-
ficer in the Palestine war, has emerged as a popular candidate
and vote-getter. Israel Galili and Isaac Tabenkin are also
important leaders in the party.
The Communists gained an effective spokesman when Moshe
Sneh joined them in October 1954. Other leaders in the Commu-
nist Party are Shmuel Mikunis, Tewfik Toubi, Meyer Wilner, and
Esther Wilenska.
8. Informed opinion on outcome:
The outcome of the national elections is not likely to pro-
duce any great changes in the present composition of the Knesset.
The American embassy in Tel Aviv forecasts that the Mapai and Gen-
eral Zionist parties will retain approximately the same number
of seats; that on the right there may be a somewhat stronger
Progressive Party and weaker Herut; and that on the left Achdut
Haavoda may be stronger than Mapam,but will have a total no
greater than the Mapam had in the second.Knesset.
Before the 29 June government change, the embassy sug-
gested that the coalition government would be re-established.
However, there was speculation even at that early date that the
General Zionist Party would not be a member of the government
formed after the July elections. Instead, a coalition govern-
ment composed of the Mapai, the Achdut Haavoda, the Progressive
Party, and the Hapoel Hamizrachi-Mizrachi might be established.
9. Significance for US security interests:
An Israeli government which does not include the conserva-
tive General Zionist Party may create increased unrest in the
Middle East area by following an aggressive border policy, thus
endangering area peace and American security interests. Is-
rael's pro-Western orientation, however, is not likely to be
changed, since the Mapai party is expected to remain the domi-
nant party in the next government.
HUNTINGTON D. SHELDON
Assistant Director,
Current Intelligence
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