Ra’am’s Radical Makeover: Mansour Abbas Charts New Course for Arab Party

Mansour Abbas, leader of the Ra’am party, is orchestrating a significant transformation of the Arab-Israeli political movement, signalling a decisive break from its traditional structures. Among the sweeping changes is a proposal to include a Jewish candidate on the party’s electoral list – a move that represents one of several controversial shifts reshaping Ra’am’s identity and political strategy.

Abbas has overseen the party’s separation from the Shura Council and the Islamic Movement as institutional decision-making bodies, moves that signal his determination to reshape Ra’am as an independent political force. Instead, he has introduced primary elections, increased female representation, and what he describes as “geographical balance” across the party’s leadership – measures designed to modernise Ra’am’s internal structures and broaden its appeal beyond its traditional base.

The party leader, speaking to Israeli media, framed these changes as a comprehensive rebuilding effort. “Ra’am is being reconstructed,” Abbas explained, highlighting his vision of a party that operates according to contemporary democratic practices rather than the institutional frameworks that historically governed Arab-Israeli politics. The shift reflects Abbas’s pragmatic approach to politics since Ra’am joined the Israeli government coalition in 2021, breaking with the Arab bloc’s traditional boycott of the political system.

These manoeuvres have drawn comparisons to leadership strategies employed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, suggesting Abbas is adopting similar tactics of centralising power and reshaping party structures to consolidate his control. The moves underscore the complex evolution of Arab representation in Israeli politics, as Ra’am attempts to balance its community’s interests with the realities of participating in Israeli governance.

Source: Ynet — Original article in Hebrew.