New ticket wins committee election

The Mizrachi committee election has seen a slate of new candidates score a big win over the former leadership.

Benji Jotkowitz is the new president after defeating the incumbent, David Brykman.

The new group now controls the organisation, which is responsible for several Orthodox institutions in Melbourne including the Mizrachi shule, the Bnei Akiva youth movement, Kosher Australia and Leibler Yavneh College.

Jotkowitz said the vote is an example of a generational change and the result of a democratic, robust process after many years when it hasn’t been encouraged to have a contested election.

“We want people to feel part of [Mizrachi]. We want people to be involved, to put up their hand. I don’t feel it was like that, it was run by too few. And that … I believe was the problem,” he said.

Brykman thanked the community for the support shown to him during his tenure as president and the countless messages he’d received in the last week.

He also pointed to the introduction of innovative community building and youth programs, including Recharge – the subsidised Mizrachi young adult fellowship in Israel.

“Mizrachi is more than a shule, it is a close and vibrant community and the pre-eminent Religious Zionist organisation in our region. I look forward to the community working together for the continued success of Mizrachi Melbourne,” Brykman said.

The former immediate past president, Danny Lamm, who has been involved in the leadership for more than 45 years, suggested the large turnout of voters showed the level of interest in the organisation, saying, “You don’t often see a hundred people come to an AGM or several hundred people voting in elections.”

Although he backed Brykman, Lamm regarded the win for the new slate as ultimately good for Mizrachi.

“In a circumstance where somebody loses an election, then there’s always personal distress for that. But I think that we’ll all come to grips with it, because it’s [about] the synagogue. It’s the school. It’s the youth movement, it’s the place where their kids come. We certainly won’t lose membership,” he said.

The new president said he is encouraged by the way the defeated side is taking the election result.

“I believe there is unity, no hard feelings. I’m looking forward to working with David, the immediate past president.

“We believe that the time had come. And the time was for change,” Jotkowitz said.

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