This is an election poster produced by the General Zionist party for the 1951 Israeli elections. The poster features a cartoon with the title “These Democrats,” which describes their opinion of how Mapai, the party in power, views the Knesset. In the cartoon a very large man, labelled “Mapai,” is sitting on almost all of the chairs in the Knesset. On his lap sits a small man labelled “Progressive.” At the front of the room stands the speaker of the Knesset, Yosef Sprinzak. On the wall behind Sprinzak hangs a picture of Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion wearing a dictator-style military uniform. In the bottom left-hand corner are the words “Vote tzadi,” the letter representing the General Zionist party in the ballot.
The 1951 elections took place during a time of severe economic crisis. The new state was absorbing thousands of refugees who were arriving from around the world. This put a great strain on the economic system, which led the Mapai government of David Ben-Gurion to initiate austerity measures (the tzena). The General Zionist Party opposed these austerity measures and preferred a more liberal economic system that would be able to adjust enough to accommodate the economic pressures facing the country. The cartoon addresses these issues by portraying Mapai and, by extension, David Ben-Gurion who is watching from the picture on the wall, as a totalitarian government supressing the Knesset to push their agenda with the help of the progressives who were in the party’s lap.
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General Zionists – The General Zionist Party, indicated by the letter tzadi, was a centre-right political party which existed from the 1930s until the 1960s, when it became the Liberal Party. It later joined other parties to form the Likud. It was a liberal party believing in the free market and capitalism and thus opposed Mapai’s socialist ideology. This position, expressed in their slogan “Let Us Live in This Country” and their struggle against the tzena (austerity measures) imposed by Mapai in the 1950s, brought the General Zionists many votes.
1951 Elections – The 1951 elections for the second Knesset were called early after the first Knesset had been in session for only two and a half years. The coalition governing the first Knesset consisted of David Ben-Gurion’s Mapai party and a coalition of religious parties among others. Disagreement broke out regarding the education of the large number of new Jewish immigrants who were living in transit camps. This was a time of economic hardship, as the new country was absorbing large numbers of immigrants, many of whom had arrived without many resources. Ultimately, Mapai won the elections and was thus able to maintain its dominance and continue governing.
Mapai – Mapai (an acronym for Mifleget Poalei Eretz Yisrael—The Workers Party of the Land of Israel) was the dominant political party in Israel until it ceased to exist as an individual party and merged with others to form the Labour party in 1968. Established in 1930, Mapai’s base of support was the Histadrut (Labour Union), the kibbutzim, and the moshavim. Mapai was a socialist-Zionist party and focused on meeting the needs of the working class including health care, employment, youth groups, and sport. David Ben-Gurion was Mapai’s most prominent figure, serving twice as prime minister (1948–1953 and 1955–1963). In later years, additional Mapai leaders held the position of prime minister: Moshe Sharett, Levi Eshkol, and Golda Meir. The party was seriously damaged by the Lavon Affair, a failed undercover operation that brought down the government in 1961. In 1968 Mapai joined with the parties Ahdut HaAvoda and Rafi to form the Labour party and led the Israeli government until Menachem Begin’s Likud party came to power in 1977. Mapai’s election symbol was the Hebrew letter aleph.
Elections in Israel – Israel is a democratic country, and general elections for the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, take place, according to the law, once every four years. The nationwide elections are based on a multi-party, proportional representation system. The legal voting age in Israel is 18, and all Israeli citizens from sectors may vote and be elected. Using voting slips with the initials of the parties, citizens vote for their preferred party and not for individual candidates. The 120 seats in the Knesset are then assigned proportionally to the parties according to the number of votes received. After the elections, the president of Israel chooses the leader of the largest party or of the party that is most likely to form a viable coalition government. This leader then forms a government, the Knesset gives it a vote of confidence, and the leader then becomes prime minister.
