United Torah Judaism Split: Haredi Factions Consider Breakup

Following earlier reports that Degel HaTorah, the Lithuanian haredi faction, is seriously considering running independently in Israel's next elections, a dramatic meeting took place this week between representatives of the two wings of United Torah Judaism, the umbrella party that has united haredi factions for decades.

Knesset member Meir Porush, who chairs the Shlomei Emunim faction within Agudat Yisrael, met with Hanoch Zeibert, the Bnei Brak mayor who typically handles political negotiations for the Gur Hasidic dynasty and serves as secretary-general of Agudat Yisrael.

The rivalry between Porush and the Gur leadership is well-known within haredi political circles. Typically, however, the feuding parties maintain a cold peace before elections, resuming their conflicts only after votes are counted.

According to information obtained by Kikar Hashabat, the meeting was initiated by the Gur leadership and took place in a haredi-majority city. The discussion lasted several hours.

At the heart of the conversation was Degel HaTorah's desire to separate from Agudat Yisrael, and a critical assessment: whether Agudat Yisrael, representing primarily Hasidic communities, could realistically cross Israel's 3.25% electoral threshold on its own. Such a scenario would require Hasidic voters, many of whom historically don't vote despite rabbinic directives, to turn out in unprecedented numbers to prove their electoral strength for the first time in decades.

A senior Agudat Yisrael source described the meeting as dramatic, noting that "the gaps between the two sides keep growing, especially in light of the military draft law. The sides detest each other, and the fact that they met at all is already a significant statement."

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The source continued: "What Gur has done in recent years, both regarding local elections and the draft issue, are serious matters that are unacceptable from Porush's perspective. The very fact that he agreed to meet with Gur and give legitimacy to running with them, instead of joining Degel HaTorah, shows the pragmatism he's employing."

According to the source, no one believes Degel HaTorah would actually leave the Hasidic factions to face the electoral threshold alone, as that would certainly cost the haredi community at least three mandates, possibly as many as seven. The meeting aimed to determine whether such a move is even realistic, and with whom Agudat Yisrael might unite to safely cross the threshold. The discussion also touched on rumors that Gur Hasidim are promoting the establishment of a new "black party."

For skeptics who doubt this split will actually materialize, the various meetings and briefings suggest this time represents a genuine attempt—not merely a negotiating tactic by Degel HaTorah to improve its position within the joint list, such as securing the party chairmanship or better placement on the electoral slate.

Degel HaTorah, as first reported earlier by Kikar Hashabat, is well aware of internal developments within Agudat Yisrael and has reached a decision: if they can confirm they'll cross the electoral threshold without the Hasidic electorate, they will proceed with this dramatic move—a strategy that has already succeeded in local municipal elections.

MK Meir Porush (צילום: Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

The desire of the Lithuanian Haredim to run independently is not new. A similar scenario nearly occurred in the previous election cycle, but was blocked at the last moment by the late Rabbi Gershon Edelstein, who then led much of the haredi community. Rabbi Edelstein feared that Agudat Yisrael couldn't cross the threshold alone, a concern that still weighs on rabbinic leaders today as they face this decision.

Remarkably, not a single meeting about the upcoming elections has taken place between Degel HaTorah and Agudat Yisrael, an unprecedented situation with no parallel in previous election cycles. In conversations with both sides, Kikar Hashabat learned that both are examining the possibility of running separately, despite publicly projecting unity.

A senior Degel HaTorah source explained the genuine reasons behind the Lithuanian desire to separate from the Hasidic factions.

The source said:

"Until now, we've had many occasions when we wanted to run alone, for various good reasons, most of them related to wanting genuine representation for our community ...

We know we bring more than fifty percent of the votes to United Torah Judaism. These are numbers we have from our election headquarters. Not only are we larger than the Hasidim, there's also an open secret everyone knows but doesn't discuss, many, many people in the smaller Hasidic courts simply don't vote. They ignore their rabbis' instructions, and even their rebbes don't push them to vote. Our situation is different. The vast majority (an absolute majority) goes out to fulfill the religious principle of following rabbinic authority and votes in massive numbers. On election day, we're much larger than the Hasidim."

Zeibert (Photo: Yonatan Sindel / Flash90)

"But this time, that's not our trigger for separation," the senior Degel source explained. "For nearly a decade, we've been waging a terrible battle over the military draft law. Eight years ago, there was a good draft law proposed to us that was acceptable to all our rabbinic leaders. But the problem was that several important rabbis from the Hasidic sector arrived, opposed the law, and caused everyone to take a more extreme position."

"We were swept along after the extremist elements of Agudat Yisrael, and looking at it long-term, we made a big mistake," he said. "In the next Knesset, we want to finish the draft saga. That's our first goal, and if we're again with Agudat Yisrael, we're liable to get caught again in this complexity that we don't want and aren't interested in. Moreover, we've decided to return to the old, good haredi politics and stop making calculations about the right-wing bloc or small interests like Meron and so on. We want to go back to doing politics based on what benefits us. Whoever gives us the most, we'll go with them. Beyond that, we won't make any more calculations."

In conclusion, the source told Kikar Hashabat: "I don't know if we'll actually run alone this time, because in the end we might lose mandates from the Hasidic public. But what's clear and already decided with all the relevant parties is that immediately after the elections, we're separating into two official factions. We won't be together anymore."