All mayors believe they are the best choice for voters. In Israel, a select few mayors have the votes to show it, with more than a dozen commanding over 90% of the vote.
One such standout is Ronen Plot, mayor of Nof HaGalil, enjoying support from a whopping 98.5% of residents, just shy of a perfect score. (Latif Shawki fared even a little better in his Arab town of Marama.) Plot, along with a handful of other mayors, faced no serious challengers in the recent elections due to overwhelming public favor. Despite this, voters had the option to express their stance with yellow or green notes. Plot emerged victorious with a bright yellow.
The list of top-performing mayors includes:
Latif Shawki - Marama: 98.9%
Ronen Plot - Nof HaGalil: 98.5%
Ruvik Danilovich - Beer Sheva: 96%
Nissim Gozlan - Beer Ya'akov: 96%
Awad Fuad - Mazraa: 95%
Ronen Marelly - Nahariya: 94%
Eran Doron - Ramat Hanegev: 94%
Roi Levy - Nesher: 93%
Oshrat Gani Gonen - Darom Hasharon: 93%
Eli Dukorsky - Kiryat Bialik: 92%
Raz Kinstlich - Rishon Lezion: 92%
Haim Bibas - Modi'in: 92.1 %
Shahada Issam - Kfar Yasif: 91%
Shay Hajaj - Merhavim: 90%
Rami Greenberg - Petah Tikva: 88%
Ran Kunik - Givatayim: 86%
Shay Rosenzweig - Alfei Menashe: 85%
Moshe Leon - Jerusalem: 80%
Shai Reichner - Nahal Sorek: 80%
Meir Tzur - Middle Arava: 77%
Lizy Delaricha - Ganei Tikva 73%
Yehiel Zohar - Netivot: 71%
Liat Shochat - Or Yehuda 70%
Zvika Brot - Bat Yam 70%
Beni Biton - Dimona: 66%
Winning mayors shared their gratitude and thoughts:
Haim Bibas stated, "An election campaign that respected the candidates and most importantly respected you, the residents, has ended. I thank each and every one of you for the absolute trust, for the support, for the hug, and for the faith along the way. Now we continue to work together to promote our beloved city."
Ronan Plot expressed, "I thank all the dear residents of Nof HaGalil from the bottom of my heart and promise to continue to serve them with loyalty and love. I will not rest on my laurels. For me, the elections begin the morning after the counting at the ballot box and continue until the next counting. For five years, every day, I work hard" to earn "the residents' trust in me."
Nissim Gozlan thanked his constituents, saying, "I thank the residents of Beer Ya'akov for the overwhelming vote of confidence when they chose me for mayor with a majority of over 97%. Even a single candidate should receive a mandate from the residents and I am happy and cherish the fact that the residents of Beer Ya'akov expressed confidence in me for a fifth term. I congratulate all my members of the new incoming city council and I wish them much success."
Ronen Marelly expressed gratitude: "I want to thank the residents of Nahariya who, precisely in these difficult days, came out to vote and expressed renewed confidence in me and the diverse team that we presented. This election strengthens the new path that began in our city five years ago and is based entirely on the love for Nahariya. In recent years, we have done a lot to promote different fields in the city, which is undergoing an impressive development boom. We have many goals for the coming years as well and we will continue to promote Nahariya for the sake of our children and future generations in the city."
Raz Kinstlich reflected: "It moves me to see the tremendous confidence that the residents of the city have given me. This term and the last five years have been like out of a movie - I managed a city in Corona[virus], four military operations and a war that is still going on, and it is gratifying to understand that our residents appreciate everything that is done for them in routine and emergency situations. I was born and raised in this city. For me to be elected, and with such unequivocal results, it is a great honor and a true mission, and in the next five years I will also work together with my faction for this beloved city and its residents."
Liat Shohat declared, "I am happy this morning to receive the trust from the residents who have seen before their eyes the momentum of development and renewal of the city that we love so much. I have many, many plans for the coming term, among them promoting about 20 plans for urban renewal, continuing to upgrade the old neighborhoods, continuing to establish a neighborhood called Neve Ayalon and the completion of the construction of a house in the park, and of course the construction of Opark, our new employment and commercial complex. I came to continue working with all my might."
Zvika Brot expressed: "I was very moved by the expression of trust of our amazing residents. It is a tremendous privilege to be the head of the city where I was born and where I grew up all my life. We worked hard for five years to make sure that no one would reach into our public coffers again, and to revolutionize the management of the budget, festivals, in education, gardens and parks. I promise that in the next five years we will build a broad coalition that will unite the city, and we will act professionally, transparently and with clean hands to make sure that our city will indeed continue forward, and never go back."
Shay Rosenzweig conveyed, "I am grateful for the privilege of serving the residents of Alfie Menashe and cherish the extraordinary support I received. It is not a matter of course and I remind myself of this every day."