| Summary/Abstract |
Voting behaviour is often constructed by candidates’ ability to manipulate and set in motion voters’ social ‘nervous system’ by means of juxtaposing two social groups – ‘ours’ and ‘theirs’ – against one another. In the Israeli political arena, this means a sociopolitical ‘zero sum’ game between the right wing and the left wing. The present article seeks to decode the characteristics of right-wing vs. left-wing cognitive metaphors activated in the 2015 Israeli elections. Findings indicate that both sides sought to activate cultural schemes based on a sense of local belonging and social identity, with the emotional discourse focused on identifying and excluding internal enemies (i.e. those who are not ‘us’ or belong to ‘our group’).
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