One of the most remarkable images from the Oct. 30 municipal elections comes from Haifa. It depicts dozens of ultra-Orthodox supporters of the Degel HaTorah party dancing and singing to celebrate the election of a secular woman, Einat Kalisch-Rotem, as mayor of Israel’s third-largest city.
In the absence of ultra-Orthodox candidates for mayor of Haifa, the ultra-Orthodox had to make a choice, and decide whether to support a candidate outside their camp. But this proved to be complicated, given the split in Yahadut HaTorah (the ultra-Orthodox alliance) between the Lithuanian camp represented by Degel HaTorah and the Hasidic camp represented by Agudat Yisrael. In the end, Degel HaTorah’s electorate came out in support of Kalisch-Rotem, and actively backed her at that. This included the involvement of local rabbis and feverish activity by ultra-Orthodox volunteers in her campaign headquarters. These supporters completely ignored the fact that Kalisch-Rotem is a woman (it is well-known that women have little place in ultra-Orthodox politics). As it turns out, the ultra-Orthodox can support a secular woman for a political position as long as she advances their interests. In this particular instance, a coalition agreement was signed between Degel HaTorah and Kalisch-Rotem in which she promised to maintain the status quo on matters pertaining to the Sabbath and other religious issues.
