Hitorerut Party to field two Anglos on Jerusalem list
The Hitorerut Party of former Jerusalem deputy mayor Ofer Berkovich will field two candidates who were born in North America on the party’s list for the city council in the October 30 election, The Jerusalem Post has learned.
Current city councilman Dan Illouz, who was born in Montreal, will be high on the list, which will also include Yoni Mann, who was born in Los Angeles and raised in San Francisco.
Putting the two Anglos on the list will help Hitorerut compete for votes among English speakers in Jerusalem with Yerushalmim, which is headed by MK Rachel Azaria, who gave up her American citizenship when she entered the Knesset; and the Jerusalem Will Succeed list headed by Jerusalem Affairs Minister Ze’ev Elkin, whose number two, Fleur Hassan- Nahoum, was born and raised in Gibraltar, which is a British Overseas Territory.
“We neither confirm nor deny,” a Hitorerut spokesperson said. “The list will be presented at the beginning of September. Both Yoni and Dan are central members of Hitorerut, and we are proud to have them as leaders within the movement. Dan is currently serving as an Anglo member of city council and is doing a great job. Olim are definitely a priority for Ofer Berkovitch and the Hitorerut movement.”
Illouz, 32, is an attorney, the author of two books, and deputy director- general of Jgive, a non- profit whose mission is to change how Jews contribute to Israel. He made aliyah eight years ago.
In the past, Illouz was the legislative adviser for the Likud, worked in the legal department of the Foreign Affairs Ministry, and led projects at the Herzog, Fox & Ne’eman law firm in Tel Aviv. He holds degrees from McGill University in Montreal and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Mann, 31, was born to Jewish- Israeli parents of Lebanese, Syrian and Yemenite descent. He graduated from California State University, Northridge.
He currently serves as chairman of the board for the World Union of Jewish Students. He has been involved in Israel and Jewish advocacy for more than 10 years in many Zionist organizations.