The winner of the closely watched mayoral contest in Nazareth, Israel’s largest Arab-Palestinian city, between incumbent Ramiz Jaraisy (Hadash) and Deputy Mayor Ali Salam was not known on Wednesday night. Longtime mayor Ramiz Jaraisy won reelection with 43.4% of the vote. MK Hanin Zoabi (Balad) came in third, with just under 4,000 votes – 9% of the vote. There were reports early in the morning that Jaraisy won, but the Interior Ministry later clarified that the “vote was undecided.” According to the Communist Party “there is a plot against Hadash in Nazareth.” Salam, who had worked with Jaraisy for the past 20 years, this year decided to leave Hadash and create his own party.

Hadash local election meeting in the Galilee, October 2013 (Photo: Al Ittihad)

Local elections are profoundly important to Israeli public life. Key services, including education, welfare and public health, are handled largely in local government. Other Hadash elections results in several cities and localities all over the country: Abu-Snan – 22%, Iksal – 5%, Binyamina Givat-Ada (“Green for all”) – 4%, Ban’a – 7%, Jedayda Maker – 11%, Jaljulia  – 10%, Deir El Assad – 14%, Deir Hanna – 36%, Haifa – 7%, Tur’an – 20%, Tyra – 11%, Tamra – 7%, Yafia – 33%, Kaukab Abu el Hija – 24%, Kufer Yassif – 10%, Kafr Manda – 4%, Karmiel (“Rainbow for Social Justice”) – 3%, Lod (“United List”) – 15%, Majd el Kurum – 15%,  Maghar – 8%, Mazra’a – 17%, Sakhnin – 11%, Eilaboun – 22%, Ein Mahel – 19%, Qalansawe – 5%, Rehovot (“City Square” list) – 6%, Rayna – 7%, Shefa-‘Amr – 10% and Tel Aviv-Jaffa (“City for All”) – 6%.