New Haredi Party Submits Election List with 2 Women
A new Haredi party, "Hatzibur HaHaredi," has submitted its Knesset election list with chairman Moti Leitner and two women, offering a moderate alternative.
Jerusalem, 8 September, 2026 (TPS-IL) — A new Israeli political party, “Hatzibur HaHaredi” (The Haredi Public), has submitted its candidate list ahead of the Knesset elections, including party chairman, high-tech entrepreneur Moti Leitner, Asher Freddy, and two women: Dr. Nechumi Yaffe, a political psychologist at Tel Aviv University, and Ziva Glantz, who guides major international investors through Israeli bureaucracy.
Haredi parties in Israel, such as Shas and United Torah Judaism, do not include women on their election slates because of religious and community norms.
The party’s literature positions it as a moderate alternative within Israel’s Haredi (devout) community.
Leitner argues that mainstream Haredi parties have drifted toward extremism, aligning with hardline factions that reject military service entirely. His platform instead calls for integrating Haredi men into the army through dedicated religious units, and for expanding secular subjects like math and English in religious schools so children can eventually support their families.
Leitner frames this as a first-ever alternative for both devout and traditional Israeli voters who feel unrepresented by existing options.