Israeli Election Results - Political perspective re Disengagement

Today's election in Eretz Yisroel points to the absolute division within Israeli society regarding security issues.

The Hard Left (Labor/Meretz) got 20% of the vote
The Hard Right (Likud, Yisrael BeItanu, Nat'l Union) got 25% of the vote
The Center - Kadima - got 24% of the vote.

The remaining 30 percent is divided amongst single issue party blocks: (in order of largest voting) Chareidim (Aguda and Shas), Arab Parties and the Pensioners party (whose members are free to vote their conscience on Security issues).

One could argue that there IS a consensus about what Israeli's DON'T believe. A majority of Israelis (the Center and Hard Right) who voted for the ideological parties DON'T believe that it is possible to make peace with the current Palestenians - whether in Fatah or Hamas. A majority of Israelis (the Center and Hard Left) who voted for the ideological parties DON'T believe in the concept of Greater Israel and are willing to make territorial compromises. And it also seems that there is a begrudging consensus from this group to make unilateral concessions. However, this does NOT represent a majority of the Jewish electorate.

So contrary to earlier reports in the media (and contrary to what I thought), the majority of Israeli Jews do NOT support unilateral disengagement (only 48%.)

The above is true only if you assume that: a) the Pensioners Party has no opinion on Security Issues and b) althought the Chareidim believe in land for peace in theory, in practice, in the current geopolitical climate, they do not.

But if you argue that the Pensioners party is basically a left wing party and its members would mostly have voted for Kadima, Labor or Meretz, then there IS a slim but not tiny majority of the Jewish electorate in support of unilateral disengagement (54%.)

So like all things political, it depends on the spin.