Thirty city council members, one new mayor without any representative and the largest opposition ever seen at the council – this is the new group that will lead Jerusalem's affairs for the next five years. Hitorerut head Ofer Berkovitch, who came close to landing the mayoral gig, has finally decided – after two months of repeated and failed attempts to reach an agreement with Mayor Moshe Lion – to remain in the opposition. His list has seven seats, the largest-ever opposition group at the council. But with all due respect to the importance of being a representative of city residents at the council, what really matters for the daily life of Jerusalemites is who is who on the committees – and even more so, who heads some of the most important committees. That was the main reason for Berkovitch's decision to renounce entering the coalition; he was refused the helm (a partnership) of the prestigious local planning and construction committee. Here are the factions with their respective leaders and portfolios: Aguda (Yossi Daitch) – Sanitation (together with Mayor Lion); historical site preservation; haredi employment. Shas (Zvika Cohen) – Haredi youth, sport, education administration and community centers; finance; plot and public venue allocations; absorption of olim. Degel Hatorah (Eliezer Rauchberger) – Public real estate; financing haredi education; haredi culture; local planning and construction; welfare administration; mass transportation; infrastructure; city supervisors; religious use of public venues. Bnei Torah (Haim Epstein) – Public health; Tipat Halav clinics. Jerusalem Will Succeed (Yehuda Ben-Yossef and Fleur Hassan-Nahoum) – Small businesses; veterinary services; foreign relations; fund-raising for Jerusalem. Meretz (Laura Wharton) – Empowering women; senior residents. Bayit Yehudi (Hagit Moshe) – Education; communities; special-needs persons; seniors. Likud (Elisha Peleg) – Sport; emergencies and security. Meuhadim (Arieh King) – Youth movements; community centers and local councils; Jewish heritage Saving Jerusalem (Yossi Havilio) – Parking; youth authorities.
Post-election, who’s who at Safra Square?(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM)Updated: