For Oran, a 36-year-old Israeli living in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, the decision to fly home for Israel's October 27 election is partly about politics and partly about being able to live with himself decades from now. "I don't know if it's so much my vote that would change the future because it's just one vote," he told Newsweek. "But it's more looking back at my life one day when I'm old, and if Israel is really doing poorly, at least I know I did my part and I showed up and I did the bare minimum." Oran left Israel at 21, after completing his military service, to pursue his undergraduate degree in the United States.
He hasn't always returned home for elections. This year, however, the prospect of another government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made the journey feel particularly urgent. "It feels like the future of Israel is depending on this," he said.
"It feels like if Netanyahu gets reelected, Israel will turn into Iran, and it will be the end of anything that we know, really." Oran is among thousands of Israelis living overseas who are preparing to return to their home country to participate in Tuesday's election. According to the U.S.-based nonprofit AID Coalition, an estimated 53,000 Israelis abroad are expected to make the journey. The projection comes from an August survey of approximately 17,500 respondents, 72 percent of whom said they intended to travel to Israel to vote.
Fifty-eight percent reported that they had already purchased plane tickets. The unusual mobilization is partly a consequence of Israeli election law. Unlike Americans, who can generally cast absentee ballots from overseas, most Israeli citizens must be physically present in Israel to vote.
Exceptions exist for diplomats, certain government representatives serving abroad and qualifying family members. For Israelis living in New York, that means crossing the Atlantic, potentially spending thousands of dollars and rearranging their lives for the opportunity to cast a single ballot. The organization Fly&Vote, an initiative of AID Coalition, has been helping expatriates navigate those logistical obstacles.
The group previously advertised round-trip flights from New York to Tel Aviv for $1,800, although airfare is only part of the potential expense. The effort has also become a political controversy. Netanyahu's Likud party challenged the initiative before Israel's Central Elections Committee, arguing that the assistance risked violating election laws governing benefits to voters.
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