Principals in Histadrut Campaign Report Costs Totaling $1, 722, 000

The Mapai-Achdut Avoda alignment bloc reported today that the joint slate had spent 3, 966, 000 pounds ($1, 322, 000) in the Histadrut election campaign which preceded the labor federation’s balloting last Sunday. The joint Liberal-Herut (Gahal) list announced it had spent 1, 190, 000 pounds ($400, 000) during the campaign. The disclosures ended a period of accusations by the two blocs against each other of spending “hundreds of millions” in the election campaigns.

The alignment leadership today named Deputy Prime Minister Abba Eban and Transport Minister Moshe Carmel to key posts in its election campaign for the Parliamentary balloting on November 2. Former Premier David Ben-Gurion’s Israel Workers List (Rafi) named former Housing Minister Josef Almogi as head of its Parliamentary campaign organization, and said that former Chief of Staff Zvi Tsur, a Rafi candidate for Parliament, will also take an active part in the campaign.

In a related development, Justice Minister Dov Joseph formally resigned today from the Mapai-Achdut Avoda election list for the Parliamentary balloting. In a letter to Mapai secretary Reuven Barkatt, he noted he had been assigned to the 118th place on the list, and that this was done “without my consent and without my authority.” The maximum number of names a party can list is 120 for the corresponding number of seats in Parliament. Placement at the bottom of the list virtually guaranteed that Mr. Joseph would not be re-elected.

The placement of the Justice Minister’s name at the bottom of the list was believed due to his vote in the Mapai Party Central Committee against the expulsion of Mr. Ben-Gurion and six of his followers on charges that they split the party by forming their independent Israel Workers Party (Rafi).