Beit Shemesh and Tel Aviv

It’s frightening that two years after that examination began, important aspects of the affair still have not been investigated. This is not an isolated incident, but rather evidence of systemic rot.

Israel’s system of local elections has been in place since the 1970s - but is it optimal? Prof. Gideon Rahat proposes reform to enhance the compatibility of the system to the characteristics and needs of different localities.

As Israel enters its eighth decade, Yohanan Plesner, President of the Israel Democracy Institute, reflects on the delicate balance between the state’s two dominant characteristics – Jewish and democratic – which has never been more contested.