Downplaying the Family Man Image -- to His Advantage

March 16, 2006 — -- Israel's acting prime minister may be leading in the polls for the general election, but he often jokes he'll always be outvoted at home.

To maintain his lead in the March 28 election, Ehud Olmert is using all but one of the usual tricks to win votes. Unlike his rivals, he is downplaying his image as a family man.

That's because Olmert's family would never vote for him, let alone attract the kind of voters his party is desperate to draw.

Perception and Reality

With campaigning well under way for the 31 parties in the election, the TV campaign ads are now in heavy rotation, introducing all the leaders and their platforms.

Amir Peretz, the leader of the Labor Party, is shown using old childhood snapshots and pictures of him with his wife and children. The unmistakable message seems to be he is a trustworthy family man. In another ad, Benjamin Netanyahu, the leader of Likud Party, plays chess with his father. The message is hardly subtle -- Netanyahu is playing a game that requires strategy with a wise, old man, his dad.

In the TV ads featuring Olmert, there are only a few quick shots of his wife and no mention of the rest of his family. That is not a surprise as Olmert is working hard to try and bring in more right-wing voters who are trying to decide whether to support his party Kadima.

Quick images aside, there is little mention of Olmert's wife, Aliza. She is an accomplished writer, but has also been an active participant in Peace Now, a left-wing Israeli group that opposes the occupation and considers Olmert "the enemy."

One of Olmert's daughters is openly gay and living with her partner in Tel Aviv. One of his sons skipped out on the compulsory service in the Israeli Defence Force and was also a member of the extreme leftist group Yesh Gvul.

Olmert doesn't need his family's direct support at the ballot box. His Kadima party holds a commanding lead at the polls.

Still, it appears Olmert is not taking any chances.