The Jerusalem Post, Internet News Article, February 6th, 2001:
Shas aims to keep dead kibbutzniks from voting
By Gil Hoffman
JERUSALEM (February 6) - Shas announced yesterday that it
is sending activists to kibbutzim today to prevent dead people from
voting, in light of recent investigations showing that such a
phenomenon is widespread in bastions of the Left.
"Every year, there are articles written about fraudulent voting in
[religious] Bnei Brak, but after we heard that the same thing
happens on kibbutzim, we wanted to make sure it would not happen in
this election," Shas spokesman Yitzhak Sudri explained. "We will send
secular activists to make sure all their voters are living, because
haredim would stand out on a kibbutz and we don't want to cause a
ruckus."
Sudri described the phenomenon as "a return of secular people to
their roots and a new-found belief in the reviving of the dead."
United Kibbutz Movement spokesman Ofer Kol responded, ironically,
with a quote from the Talmud, saying "Those who accuse are guilty
themselves."
Kol pointed out that the Interior Ministry checks its records of who
is living and dead on kibbutzim every six months. But he said the
Shas activists are welcome and assured that there will be a presence
of his own activists at every polling place in Bnei Brak.
"It is still a democratic country, so they are invited to come to any
kibbutz they want to come see how clean voting can be," Kol said. "We
wish we had the money Shas has to do a comprehensive search on Bnei
Brak. If we did, there is no way they would have gotten to 17
MKs."
Sudri said Shas will have more than 6,000 activists working on
Election Day from morning until night to get its voters to the polls.
They will provide transportation, babysitting services, and anything
else necessary to ensure a maximum voter turnout in its camp.
"There are no undecideds in Shas," Sudri said. "We are already angry,
we don't need to spend anything on public relations. All we have to
do is bring as many people as possible to the polls, almost all of
whom will vote for [Ariel] Sharon."
