Pubdate: Wed, 29 Jan 2003
Source: Jerusalem Post (Israel)
Copyright: 2003 The Jerusalem Post
Contact:  http://www.jpost.co.il/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/516
Author: Hilary Leila Krieger
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/area/Israel (Israel)

GREEN LEAF PARTY'S HOPES GO UP IN SMOKE

Supporters of the pro-drug legalization Green Leaf Party waited to see
if their high expectations would lead to the euphoria of two Knesset
mandates or crash and burn if the party falls just short of the 1.5%
vote threshold at their post-election party last night.

Exit polls showed the party teetering between 0-2 seats.

"It would have been nice if the result were conclusive now," said Dan
Goldenblatt, the party's director-general. "It's a problem to poll
small parties."

A group of around 100 people, mostly press, gathered to see if the
ultimate grassroots party could make off with the close to 50,000
votes needed for two Knesset seats.

Pre-election polls gave the party a shot at upwards of three seats,
which pundits attributed to dissatisfaction, particularly among young
voters, with mainstream parties.

Goldenblatt added, "polls can be misleading." In 1999, the Green Leaf
Party won 1%, or 34,029 votes.

If the party sneaks into the Knesset, its top priorities will be drug
legalization, pro-environmental legislation, and efforts to separate
church and state.

Rechavia Berman, the party's communications director, said that even
if the party was invited to do so, it probably would not join a Sharon
coalition because "we find it hard to conceive of a coalition with
Sharon that we would want to have something to do with."

He said he was not disturbed that many green leaf party votes were
reaped from protest voters. Berman noted that the party's
post-election event was drug free. "We don't want to cause any
provocation. This is basically a work function and we don't get stoned
when we work. We are responsible people," he said. uph
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake