Nat'l-Religious Divided in Mayoral Race

Rabbi Chaim Druckman supports Kadima candidate Nir Barkat for mayor, but many others have signed a call in favor of hareidi candidate Meir Porush. The mayoral race in Jerusalem this coming Tuesday is shaping up to be a tight one. Arcadi Gaydamak is a long-shot dark horse, and the real race is between Nir Barkat of Kadima and former Deputy Mayor Meir Porush of United Torah Judaism. Though in the the last elections, five years ago, hareidi-religious candidate Uri Lupoliansky defeated Barkat by a handy 52-43% margin, this time it appears too close to call. Barkat has become more well-known than he was then, and is now actively courting the critical religious-Zionist vote. According to MK Zevulun Orlev, leader of the National Religious Party, Barkat is succeeding. "Most of the polls show that more than 75% of our voters in... [read full story]