LIVEBLOGGING FROM KADIMA ELECTION PARTY AT THE DAVID INTERCONTINENTAL

This is so typically Israeli. Nothing is ever clear cut. Don’t know if I was just at a victory party or a farce?

Who won?

According to exit polls, Livni’s Kadima won 29 or 30 mandates, beating Netanyahu’s Likud by 2 mandates. That’s still not enough to form a government as the right wing bloc is too large.

But that didn’t stop Livni from declaring victory in her speech.

So now what happens?

President Peres has to decide who he gives a chance to form a government.

We’re in for a very interesting period.

The winning Kadima election campaign was divided into two sections: the organizational and the public relations effort.

The organizational team was subdivided into two teams: the months leading up to the election, headed by Immigrant Absorption Minister Eli Aflalo; and the Election Day team headed by Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter. Aflalo was tasked with printing 5 million Kadima voting cards, appointing Kadima officials at the regional and city headquarters as well as monitors at the polling booths, and procuring 10,000 umbrellas with the Kadima logo printed on them [evidently Livni didn't get one as she was caught in the rain during the day]. Aflalo’s team also produced and distributed fliers, posters, voting cards and other material to the Kadima functionaries across the country. The party had some 10,000 people at polling booths and Kadima offices across the country. Trying to squeeze every last possible voter in the allotted time, Dichter sent out instructions to make sure that all 10,000 Kadima people had voted. Aflalo’s mistake was that he put some of these monitors at polling booths far away from the neighborhoods they were registered at, so Dichter’s people worked that problem, and even made sure that the private security guards stationed at Kadima stations had voted. Continue reading →