Israeli Election

On January 29, 2003, Israeli voters provided Ariel Sharon and his Likud Party a strong and stunning victory, capturing 38 seats in Israel's 120-seat parliament. Sharon must now fashion together a coalition from a number of diverse parties, each with its own goals. While the results of the election have prompted controversial reactions from east to west, local election analysis by Emunah Elon demonstrates there is also plenty of controversy over the result within Israel. Common opinion views the results of the election as a product of Sharon's right-wing hard-line stance against terrorism. However, Elon argues that Israeli's are tired of ideology on either side. Left-wing failure, with respect to the Oslo Peace Accord, and perceptions that right-wing policies result in increased terrorism and violence have left voters apathetic. As Elon argues, "The right-wing's victory is therefore just a technical victory, simply because the left-wing cannot build a government" (1).

The Likud Party symbolizes the creation of a Palestinian State and a hard-line stance against terrorism to many outside Israel. However, Elon argues that Sharon did not actually provide an agenda that represent his real beliefs, and she argues that "People think the right-wing won because they think the Likud is right-wing" (1). Elon argues that this is not the case and that Sharon faces a monumental task in uniting the different parties in

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