Wednesday, August 13, 2025

Eretz HaKodesh – Worldwide Update & Call to Action

Av 5785
August 2025

Dear Friends,

Shalom aleichem,

It's been a while since we last connected, and what a whirlwind it has been! The election period has been intense, inspiring, and full of surprises. While you haven't heard from us, the Eretz HaKodesh team has been working tirelessly around the world, building, defending, and advancing our mission. Now that the dust is settling, I'm excited to share where things stand; the victories we've achieved, the challenges we've faced, and the incredible opportunities ahead.

Eretz HaKodesh (EHK) entered the world of the World Zionist Organization (WZO) with the brachos of, and at the direction of, gedolei Yisroel in Eretz Yisroel, the United States, and around the world.

Our mission was — and remains — twofold:

Sur meira – to defend kedushas Eretz Yisroel and stand up, without compromise, for our Torah and our mesorah. This means pushing back against initiatives, policies, and funding that undermine the holiness of the land, the authority of halacha, and the values we have received from our forefathers. 

Asei tov – to not only block harmful agendas, but to actively redirect budgets and resources to strengthen Torah life. This means creating programs to benefit the Torah community. This includes channeling millions of shekels to yeshivos, seminaries, organizations, and communal institutions in Eretz Yisroel and across the globe.

Boruch HaShem, we have accomplished much in both areas, and with continued siyata diShmaya, we will accomplish so much more. 

Rav Chaim Kanievsky zt"l may have foreseen what we were getting into. We at EHK certainly did not.

In 2020, EHK ran in the American elections. No one expected us to succeed. Boruch HaShem, we did. However, in the 2025 elections, we were no longer an unknown. We did well, but could have done better.  We were challenged from our left and from our right. We had challenges from the left once they realized our strength and they challenged us in the Area Election Committee (AEC) and in the World Zionist Court in Jerusalem, time after time. When you see how fiercely they fight, you begin to understand just how much is at stake and the tremendous responsibility we carry on our shoulders.

And unlike 2020, when EHK only ran in the USA, in 2025 we ran — and are still running — in 10 countries. This has meant not only an enormous amount of work, but also that EHK USA is responsible for the budgets of all these campaigns. Boruch HaShem, we have been blessed with wonderful volunteers and activists in each country, all working together to advance our mission worldwide.

In addition, we are spending much time, in the United States, Israel and worldwide, making sure that the center-right is unified and working together for the holiness of Eretz Yisroel and our commitment to halacha and mesorah.

The WZO congress is scheduled for October 28-30, 2025 in Jerusalem. EHK will iy"H have delegates from around the world. Combined with our colleagues from other religious and right-wing parties, we will be a formidable force. We are already planning and working towards that congress.

Allow me to quickly review the countries we are involved in around the world.

 

 Eretz HaKodesh around the world
 

🇺🇸 USA

In the United States, we earned 19 delegates. However, there were thousands of improper votes cast, and somehow, they were mostly for the right-wing slates. The American Zionist Movement, AZM, which is responsible for the USA elections, hired professional investigators to investigate. After more than two months, they could not find any evidence to connect any improper votes cast to any slate. In fact, based on prior activities, we believe that there are individuals from the left who may have orchestrated improper votes for the right in the hope that they would get caught and the right would be blamed. The left, which by a slim percentage controls the Area Election Committee, instituted very severe penalties against the parties on the right—again, I emphasize, without any evidence or proof of wrongdoing. EHK and many of the other right-wing parties challenged that decision in the AZM tribunal. 

The tribunal released their decision, overturning the decision of the AZM Area Election Committee. No votes or delegates will be cancelled. 
However, they did fine us $40,000, because illegal votes did end up in our slate count. I must repeat that they found no evidence or connection that EHK was responsible for those votes. However, they felt that we should have been more proactive in preventing fraud. (We are still not sure how one is expected to prevent something when one doesn't know who did it.) We have not decided if we will challenge the fine. More importantly, our delegates cannot be cancelled.

FLASH, the left wing parties in the United States have appealed to the WZO court in Jerusalem to overturn the decision of the AZM tribunal. No, the election is not over. IyH with Siyata Dismaya, we will prevail.

🇨🇦 Canada

This was the first time that we ran in Canada. We won 3 seats of the 19—a good result for the first time. 

Five years ago, the left had the majority of delegates from Canada. Today, it is basically an even split. Still, one party on the center-left is challenging the entire Canadian elections. As we always say, elections never end…

🇬🇧 England

Elections just finished in England, where we received the brachos and guidance of the Gateshead rosh HaYeshiva, Rav Avrohom Gurwicz shlita. In England, a voter had to first pre-register (about 2 months ago). Only those who pre-registered were then able to vote. About 13,000 people pre-registered and about 6,000 of those were EHK voters. One would think that if everyone voted, EHK would have earned half of the total delegates, but that was not the case. The left-controlled Area Election Committee instituted a new rule: For the sake of democracy, no slate could be awarded more than 5 delegate spots regardless of how many votes they earned. 

We see again how if they can't win with honest votes, they make up new rules to impact the elections. We sued in the WZO court in Jerusalem. During the election, just in case, once our internal polling showed that we had enough votes for 6 delegates, under the guidance of Rav Gurwicz, we directed our voters who had not voted yet to vote for Shas, the religious Sefardic party. Our goal is to minimize the strength of the left, not just to increase the strength of EHK.

The court decided that 5 delegates is the most one party can have, but they can assign their 6th delegate to another party.

EHK had the most votes, more than double the next closest slate, earning 5 delegates. As of now, Shas was assigned 3 seats, but according to our calculations, they should have received 4. They will be filing a claim in the WZO court to give them a 4th seat.

In any case, for the first time, the Zionist Federation of England will now be controlled by the religious and right-wing parties.

🇫🇷 France

Elections will be taking place soon. EHK has strong organization and representation in France, and, be"H, we will do well.

🇦🇺 Australia

We only entered the system in Australia a year ago. Elections have just ended and, Boruch HaShem, a great group of rabbis and caring individuals got involved. Results are in, with EHK receiving between 2 and 3 seats. We are awaiting the AEC final numbers.

🇦🇷 Argentina

We earned 2 delegate seats in Argentina. This was the first time we ran there.

🇧🇷 Brazil

In Brazil, we earned 1 delegate. Again, this was the first time we ran there.

🇧🇪 Belgium

We earned 1 seat in Belgium. Again, this was the first time we ran there.

🇺🇦 Ukraine

In Ukraine, we managed to secure 2 out of the 5 seats available.

🇷🇺 Russia

There were no WZO elections in Russia, but we were allotted one seat after the local Zionist federation divided up the country.


How You Can Help Us Stand Up for Torah and Mesorah in Eretz Yisroel

The work is far from over, and the more this is spoken about, the stronger we become. Every conversation, every article, and every mention makes this work more appreciated in the public eye. Time and again, people tell us, "Oh, I saw something about Eretz HaKodesh, but I didn't realize what it really was." The more it's discussed and the more people understand its value and its importance, the more support and influence we gain.

EHK is responsible for the election budgets of all ten countries where we ran, including application fees, dues, campaign expenses, attorney fees, and more. Like any presidential election, we are in a high-stakes race where large amounts of funding are in play — but the funds are not sitting in our bank account. Rather, these are funds that we are in a position to redirect to Torah institutions, kehillos, yeshivos, and communities around the world.

Just as presidential campaigns rely on the public to fund their races, we rely on you. This is not simply a donation. It's truly an investment. Every dollar that you contribute is multiplied many times over, turning into funding that strengthens Torah life and protects kedushas Eretz Yisroel.

We have raised a serious part of our budget, but we are still short by over $300,000. This includes the huge ongoing legal fees that we incurred and continue to incur due to the ongoing legal battles we face. Your support now will directly impact what we can achieve, both at the upcoming WZO Congress and in the years that follow. Please partner with us in this historic effort by contacting me at Lerner@EretzHaKodesh.org.

We would like to take this opportunity to express how deeply grateful we are to the many donors whose generosity has made this election campaign not only possible but a true success. So many of you have embraced our vision with open hearts and joined us on this journey, standing shoulder to shoulder as partners in this sacred mission. Your support means more than words can express, and we are truly blessed to have you with us. May Hakadosh Boruch Hu bestow upon you and your families only simcha and nachas.

EHK is already working with our natural partners in planning for the congress and for the day after the congress, when the action really starts. 

Please join us on this journey.

We would like thank our partner, Shas Olami, the religious Sefardic party, who shares our goals and who ran with us, as a joint slate, in a number of countries.

We would also love to hear from you. Your feedback means a great deal to us. Please reply to this email with your feedback.

 

Sincerely,

Rabbi Pesach Lerner

Chairman, Eretz HaKodesh

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