1.
A few months ago I received information that seemed to be taken from a Sherlock Holmes book.
According to the information, Gur Hasidim will march with United Torah Judaism throughout the entire election campaign, including the party's advertisements in the house newspaper "Hamodia" - and then, on the last day, there will be someone who will hint to the Hasidim to "vote Bennett.".
Those were the days before Naftali Bennett joined Yair Lapid in the faltering "Together" project.
Only because something similar happened in the Jerusalem mayoral elections (Gur acted as if she was a partner in Moshe Leon's campaign, but at the fateful moment there was a silent instruction to the Hasidim - to vote for Nir Barkat. This story has been floating in the background ever since), did I even go to check the information, which seems completely delusional to me.
Because, as they say in Gur, the Rebbe of the 'Ameri Emet' founded Agudat Yisrael and also made it clear that Gur Hasidism will not leave the party. It's like a will. Therefore, what is given in local elections, will not happen in the Knesset elections. Ostensibly. Because there can always be 'the first time' and 'generation after generation and its demands' and if the Rebbe of Gur decides that circumstances have changed, a different order can be issued.
And yet, I checked the information, realized that there was nothing realistic about it, and of course I didn't report it.
2.
Why did I remember this?
Because since the weekend, rumors have been circulating about a connection between Gur Hasidim and the 'Black Color' party - a new party, without any chance, in my opinion.
So it's true, there was a meeting on Friday night, a little after midnight, between Moti Babchik, the 'strong man' in Gur's central faction, and representatives of the new venture. But that's the only fact that is not disputed.
Hence, a battle of versions.
The party's founders, Lithuanian activists and Hasidic and Sephardic "zealots," explained to Bevchik that they were not asking for a representative on their behalf in United Torah Judaism (as if they had asked for one, they would have received one. It is no secret that there were years in which they demanded and requested and even specified the identity of the candidate they wanted, but were not answered in the affirmative, and later instructed their people not to vote at all, like Satmar and the "Eda" circles) - but only wanted to "burn" votes. All of this, of course, against the backdrop of my views: opposition to any law that does not exempt the entire Torah world from conscription into the IDF.
Babchik, for his part, explained that Gur Hasidim will never leave United Torah Judaism, and that they prefer to fight from within on the issue of conscription (a law without any sanctions, and the possibility that anyone who wants to study Torah will be able to study without interference). Babchik also invited them to join the vote for the Haredi party, with a Gur representative also representing them in the struggle.
Who initiated the meeting?
Sources in Gore claim: Babchik was invited, was not enthusiastic, but finally showed up. The 'zealous' sources claim: Babchik initiated the meeting, the initiative was Gore's - and then it was leaked by her, in order to torpedo her.
My sense of smell says that Bevchik has no shortage of work to do, he wasn't looking for initiatives, nor for (unnecessary) meetings, and it's only natural that in light of the upcoming elections, quite a few more similar spins will emerge.
3.
Let's remember the forgotten.
In 2013, shortly before the elections, the Grand Rabbi Auerbach, zt"l, arrived at the home of the Gur Rebbe for a visit that was described as "historic." From that meeting, an agreement emerged that the "Jerusalem faction" would continue to vote for "United Torah Judaism" as it had in the past (despite differences of opinion with the leader of "Degel" at the time, Maran the Grand Rabbi Shteinman, zt"l), and the representative of Gur Hasidism - then Yaakov Litzman - would work to advance the interests of the "faction," also on the issue of conscription.
It's hard to say that Gur didn't keep her promise. She was the one who opposed the law introduced by Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman in 2019, even though it was not a bad law according to 'Degel' and others. Gur was also the one who opposed the law introduced last year by MK Boaz Bismuth, chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee in the outgoing Knesset.
Ostensibly, there is no reason why the people of the "fragment" would not vote for "United Torah Judaism" - while everyone understands that they are voting for a Gur representative.
But, logic does not always rule in decisions of this kind, and it seems that there are elements who would prefer to 'burn' votes. In between, perhaps they will also invite meetings from which leaks and accusations will emerge against Gur, since she initiated the meeting (or not), and supports the idea (or not).
Delusional? Such are the spins of election night. Start getting used to it.
