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Shas Party is losing its electoral base

The battle between current Shas leader Aryeh Deri and former Chairman Eli Yishai will surely affect voters, who might prefer other parties over Shas.
Aryeh Deri (C), leader of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, attends an annual pilgrimage to the gravesite of Rabbi Yisrael Abuhatzeira, a Moroccan-born sage and kabbalist also known as the Baba Sali, in the southern town of Netivot January 14, 2013.  Powerful political players for years, Israel's ultra-Orthodox parties must now reckon with a new force ushered in by voters bent on stripping them of perks they have relied on for decades. Picture taken January 14, 2013. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS
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“It’s all spin … I can assure you with absolute certainty that there will not be any splits in Shas … Shas is united,” visibly annoyed Knesset member Aryeh Deri said when asked in an interview with Israeli TV Channel 1 on Sept. 30 about the bitter conflict between him and Knesset member Eli Yishai in the party’s highest echelons.

Shas Party Chairman Deri arrived at the studio as the main guest in a discussion to mark the first anniversary of the death of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, the Shas Party founder and spiritual leader. He insisted on painting a rosy picture of the party. According to him, Shas survived its leader's death with considerable success and is now fulfilling the legacy he bequeathed it by serving as a social party.

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