Very strange, but I like the idea. According to this report, the haredi parties in Jerusalem  leading up to local municipal elections, have been negotiating a deal in which they would support current mayor Nir Barkat for re-election, instead of fielding their own candidate.

With two high profile names in the hat for the Haredi parties, the entire idea is strange. Both former mayor Uri Lapolianski and MK Aryeh Deri have been considered serious possibilities as haredi mayoral candidates. Both are capable of putting up a good fight in a race, and both are capable of winning. The parties though are worried about legal issues with Lapolianski, probably regarding his involvement in the Holyland corruption case, even though he has already pretty much been cleared, and Deri as the candidate could cause a lot of infighting.

Instead of coming up with a different candidate, somebody in the clear from both legal and moral perspectives, they are considering supporting Barkat. They say they are following the Tzippi Livni model - despite her having just a small party, her being the first to sign an agreement with Netanyahu gave her far more power and influence than she should have had solely base don party size. By throwing their support to Barkat before anyone else, and basically helping him lock up the election, they can get more power than they previously had and can snag the senior portfolios.

It is a strange idea, considering how decent their chances are for winning the election with their own candidate, especially in light of recent articles that described how split the general electorate is in this election season, but I like it. I think Barkat has been a pretty good mayor, and has put Jerusalem on the international map in a big way, and has administered the city very well and very professionally, and I think he has been pretty fair all around to all sectors.. I think it is very mature of them to back, or at least consider backing, a good mayor, which clearly they recognize he is, rather than insist on floating their own candidate just because they can.