Haredi membership in Likud reportedly triples as thousands join party

Thousands of ultra-Orthodox voters have joined the Likud party as part of a bid to directly influence the workings of Israel’s ruling faction, Channel 12 reports.

The share of Haredi members in Likud, Israel’s largest party and one of only a handful to hold primaries for its electoral slate, has tripled, the network reports. The party’s liberal wing, meanwhile, has shrunk, the channel says.

The Haredi growth comes as Likud completes a drive for new and lapsed members to join the party, which currently leads the coalition in the Knesset and has governed Israel for most of the past half-century.

To illustrate the spike, Channel 12 notes that Haredi public relations strategist and Likud member Yossi Rosenbaum recently registered more than 2,100 new Likud members.  That figure brings the total number of Likud voters he has registered to approximately 7,300, Channel 12 reports.

According to the network, of Likud’s 140,000 members, fewer than 80,000 voted in the most recent primaries.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Likud’s present and longtime leader, has partnered with Haredi parties repeatedly in recent decades. Haredi parties recently left his government in a dispute over a law regulating ultra-Orthodox enlistment.

Channel 12 says the growth of the Haredi membership reflects a desire to influence Likud and its lawmakers from within.