This is an election poster for the Poale Tzion (Worker’s Union) Party in the 1961 Israeli elections. The background of the poster resembles architectural blueprints. A large picture of a hand with the index finger pointing toward the viewer is the poster’s main illustration. The caption above the hand says, “You Did It!” Next to the finger, in black letters, are the words: “Not a party, and not a leader! You built the state!” The text at the bottom of the poster says to vote for the Poale Tzion Party, which was represented at the polls by the Hebrew letters taf vav. The pointing finger is reminiscent of historical posters such as the World War I poster of Lord Kitchener pointing toward the viewer with the text “Your Country Needs You!” and the American army recruitment poster from World War II featuring Uncle Sam pointing and saying, “I want YOU for the U.S. Army.” The poster is campaigning against Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion and the Mapai party, the ruling party from the time of the establishment of the State of Israel until becoming the Labour Party in 1968.
The poster is stating that voters need not vote out of a feeling of obligation to Ben-Gurion and Mapai for their role in creating the State of Israel. It was the people of Israel who created the State, the poster claims, and, therefore, people should feel free to vote for whomever they want, specifically the Poale Tzion Party.
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Ahdut Ha’Avoda-Poalei Zion - The Ahdut Ha’Avoda-Poalei Zion (Labour Unity - Zionist Workers) Party had initially merged with Mapam, another socialist party. In 1954, Ahdut Ha’Avoda split from Mapam and became an independent party which ran in the 1955, 1959, and 1965 Knesset elections and was a member of each of the subsequent governments. Ahdut Ha’Avoda was a socialist, Zionist party which strove to make peace without territorial concessions and supported the development of settlements. In 1965, Ahdut Ha’Avoda joined with Mapai to run together as Ma’arach (Labour Alignment). In 1968, Ahdut Ha’avoda, Mapai, and the centre-left party Rafi joined together to form the Labour Party.
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.
1961 Israeli Elections – The elections for the 5th Knesset were held on August 15, 1961, only two years after the previous ones. The elections were held in the shadow of David Ben-Gurion’s resignation as prime minister in January 1961 following the Lavon Affair. Ben-Gurion was standing, once again, as the head of Mapai, and there was another attempt to use the slogan from the previous election – “Say Yes to the Old Man” – to convince the public to choose an experienced leader. However, this time, the message didn't work, as the party and Ben-Gurion’s image had been damaged due to the Lavon Affair and internal disputes. Mapai lost 10% of its power in the elections with the right-wing Herut and Liberal parties gaining many seats in the Knesset.