Sam Sokol, The Jerusalem Post – Former journalist Yair Lapid’s meteoric rise can be attributed to his focus on the middle class, says pollster Mark Mellman.
Former journalist Yair Lapid’s meteoric rise can be attributed to his focus on the middle class, says pollster Mark Mellman.
Mellman is president and CEO of the Mellman Group, a research and strategic advice agency, who has helped guide the campaigns of, among others, 18 US senators. He was also Lapid’s personal pollster during the campaign for the 19th Knesset.
Speaking with The Jerusalem Post by phone from Tel Aviv, Mellman explained what he thinks contributed to Lapid’s strategic coup.
The first factor in the success of any campaign, Mellman said, is having what he terms an “outstanding candidate. The most important asset any campaign has is the candidate.”
However, beyond the personal appeal of Lapid, he believes, there stands another factor that accounts for the new faction’s electoral success: the ability to appeal to the middle class.
“Yesh Atid really emerged very clearly as the voice of the middle class Israeli, and that’s something that hasn’t happened before,” Mellman said.
“People have talked about economic issues, they have talked about social issues, but nobody really