Inequality, Identity, and the Long-Run Evolution of Political Cleavages in Israel, 1949–2019

This paper draws on preand post-election surveys to address the long run evolution of voting patterns in Israel from 1949 to 2019. The heterogeneous ethnic, cultural, educational, and religious backgrounds of Israelis created a range of political cleavages that evolved throughout its history and continue to shape its political climate and its society today. Despite Israel’s exceptional characteristics, we find similar patterns to those found for France, the UK and the US. Notably, we find that in the 1960s–1970s, the vote for left-wing parties was associated with lower social class voters. It has gradually become associated with high social class voters during the late 1970s and later. We also find a weak inter-relationship between inequality and political outcomes, suggesting that despite the social class cleavage, identity-based or “tribal” voting is still dominant in Israeli politics.