Tomorrow elections will be held in the ton of Telshe Stone, after its long-time mayor, Avraham Rosenthal, recently died, shortly after being re-elected to the position.

I know almost nothing about the two candidates vying for the top spot in this town - I don't have an opinion as to which of the two will do a better job, nor as to which is more or less deserving.. The only thing I do know is that one candidate, Yitzchak Ravitz, son of former MK Avraham Ravitz, has a good reputation, but he was rejected from Betar. 6 months ago Degel Hatorah in Betar held an internal primary election in preparation for what was then the upcoming municipal elections. Ravitz, who was Deputy Mayor at the time, lost to Dudi Zaltz. After he lost, Degel moved Ravitz out and sent him to Telshe Stone to prepare to run against Rosenthal. The other candidate is Yanky Pelei, and I absolutely nothing about him.

Ravitz had tried to usurp the seat from Rosenthal, but Rosenthal withstood the pressure on him and decided to run for re-election anyway, which he won. There was some bad blood, and Rosenthal supporters, led by his widow, are now supporting Pelei in tomorrow's election, while Degel is supporting Ravitz.

Anyways, with the election tomorrow, it seems Degel is stepping up the pressure to get people to vote for Ravitz. Degel activist and leader Mottka Bloi is warning residents of Telshe Stone that they should not base their vote on emotional or personal reasons against the candidate supported by the gedolim (i.e. Ravitz). Bloi warns that whoever votes against the decision of the gedolim will pay a heavy price through his descendants who will go against him and spend their time enjoying their recreational time in Abu Ghosh. Meaning, their interests will be turned elsewhere, away from Judaism, just because they voted for the other candidate..

I don't know one from the other in Telshe Stone and it does not matter to me who wins the election and who loses, but it is this type of intimidation and fear mongering that I oppose and am repulsed by. Compete in your election on the merits of the candidate. Tell people which candidate your rav supports and remind them of the importance of following the gedolim, if that is what is important in your community. Threats, warnings, fire and brimstone, dire predictions, and other scare tactics are just despicable. In a sense I hope people vote against Bloi's recommendation just to show that the days of intimidation and scare tactics are over.