MK Malchieli in a Candid Interview: 'We'll Do Everything to Prevent the Disgrace'

This week it's about to happen: after three months of complacency coupled with vigilance, a sense of curiosity along with fear and apprehension, the citizens of Israel are about to cast their votes at the polling stations, bringing this prolonged election campaign to a close at last.

MK Michael Malchieli, ranked as candidate number 6 on the Shas list, who served in the 20th Knesset in various committees and positions, took time to answer pressing questions and give his assessment on what to expect in the upcoming battle.

(Photo: Yaakov Cohen)

A True Referendum

Let's start with a simple question - what is the great importance of voting in the upcoming elections and adding another mandate to Shas? After all, the ultra-Orthodox parties are not considered the kingmakers, and it's common to claim that Lieberman is the one who tips the scales, so why does it matter if there is one more or one less voice?

"First and foremost, voting is extremely important, even when not considered kingmakers, because, as they say, 'every vote counts.' We saw this clearly in the last elections. If three months ago we would have received nine mandates instead of eight, we could have become partners in a right-wing government coalition. We could have prevented the march to additional elections. Think about it - all the government money wasted in those three months, leading to cuts in weaker segments, teaches us how significant every vote is.

"But there's more to it - now, in these specific elections, this is the first time a true referendum is held here to determine if we want religion, Judaism, and Hashem as part of our state, or if we prefer, Heaven forbid, a separation of religion and state, with public transportation on Shabbat, a Reform Western Wall, and yeshiva students being drafted into the army. Yes, on Tuesday, the citizens of Israel will vote and decide if they want a religious state with tradition and compassion, or, God forbid, a state for the wealthy from Ra'anana and Tel Aviv, further deepening the class divides."

Are you optimistic? Do you think people understand this significance?

"Absolutely not. Unfortunately, there is a strong sense of complacency in the public, and if people don't wake up in time, instead of spending five minutes to get to the polls, they'll have to endure four years of severe weeping, during which we will discover new laws daily that distance us from the Torah and religion, and of course - all our achievements in the periphery will revert because there will be no one to care for the public not living in the central moneyed areas. I'll be honest - I don't think there's a way to shake everyone. As party leaders and Knesset members, we have little to do to improve the situation effectively. Unless the public urgently shakes itself, we will face a very serious problem. People need to wake up and realize that there is no time to dream; each of us must bring ourselves to the polls and even bring along close ones and friends to prevent the expected disgrace. Think about it - it could be a terrible disgrace if, heaven forbid, Shas drops in mandates. It's hard for me to believe anyone could reconcile with this disgrace."

Are you trying to say in other words that the maximum you hope for is not to drop below the eight mandates of the previous time?

"Of course we aspire to grow; Shas always aspires to grow, and we believe there's a significant chance of that happening. But, God forbid, we also know it could be the opposite. If the public is indifferent, we will shrink to seven mandates, maybe even six. Nobody wants that disgrace. Every Sephardi understands and knows that Maran's dignity is at stake. We don't want to see Maran's project collapse and go to the opposition; we want to bring more and more achievements. I think each of us must keep this vision in mind."

And how is Shas appealing to the secular voters now that other parties, like Amir Peretz's, are competing for the social niche, promising a 'social Iron Dome'?

"Amir Peretz is not our competitor at all, and in fact, there is currently no party in the right-wing bloc competing on the same platform as Shas. In the past, we had Kahlon, who followed us and upheld similar values, but since he attached himself to the Likud, his platform no longer matters. It can be said that there is currently no party in the right-wing bloc that sees itself as committed to caring for the needs of the weaker sectors. This is a message we're also spreading through the campaigns in the secular public. One can see our ads spreading across mixed neighborhoods, with big campaigns and advertisements on all social networks. We can't know exactly how many in the secular public vote for Shas, but from the internal analyses we do, it's clear we're talking about a very large audience. Shas is the home party of the Sephardic public - both for the religious and the non-religious Easterners who see it as a sort of home."

Touring from Headquarters to Headquarters

What are your personal plans for election day?

"As the manager of the Jerusalem headquarters, a city with 35,000 voters, we have 12 areas with hundreds of volunteers. I'm personally going to spend my election day touring from headquarters to headquarters and dealing with the various and diverse problems that always arise. My ambition is to manage this campaign in the most professional and correct way possible. I think today there is no party in Israel with the knowledge to manage an election campaign like Shas. We are going to allocate all our resources, knowledge, and wide deployment, as well as all the forces of the party activists, to make election day as professional as possible."

What time do you plan to start your election day?

"I already started this morning, Sunday. I was already this morning sitting in the early hours at the main Shas headquarters in Jerusalem, along with Rabbi Tzvika Cohen and our central team, trying to plan the election day event, with many prayers for heavenly assistance."

Of course, the aspiration is for the ultra-Orthodox to enter the coalition, but let's examine another scenario - do you think you can still influence from the opposition?

"There is no doubt that the influence from the opposition is minimal at best, incomparable to being in the coalition. However, we are clear that we will not sell our values for a coalition. If the condition for joining the coalition is to accept basic guidelines contrary to compassion and Israel's tradition, we will proudly go to the opposition and fight from there. But let's leave the pessimistic forecast; we are still the day before; let's focus and do what is still possible so we won't reach a moment of disgrace and mourning."

So let's be optimistic -which portfolios does Shas want the day after?

"We aim, of course, to deal with social issues and matters Shas has dealt with in the past. But even here I prefer not to detail too much. In the coming hours, we see one task ahead of us - to bring as many mandates as possible, as many votes as possible, to shake the indifferent public not to stay home, and then move on to the next stages. Meanwhile, I want to make one simple request - go out and vote, our destiny and the destiny of the state are at stake and it is in our hands."