Yesh AtidOpposition · 24
Elazar Stern
אלעזר שטרן
MK (Yesh Atid); former Minister of Intelligence (2021-2022)
Retired IDF major general and former head of the Manpower (Human Resources) Directorate, where he launched the Nativ program that has guided over 12,000 soldiers from the former Soviet Union to halachic conversion; a kippah-wearing modern-Orthodox voice who entered the Knesset in 2013 with Tzipi Livni's HaTnuah and joined Yesh Atid in 2015 to advance religious-Zionist reform from within.
Positions and record
- Champions broader access to halachic conversion through municipal-rabbi tribunals, building on his Nativ legacy
- Urges expanding IDF and national-service participation so the burden of defending Israel is more widely shared, while respecting Torah scholarship
- Calls for state recognition of non-Orthodox streams alongside the existing Orthodox framework
- Seeks to open marriage and kashrut options beyond the Chief Rabbinate while preserving halachic standards
- Was a vocal critic of the 2023 judicial reform package and has pushed for broad national unity
Cite this page
Elazar Stern, The State of Israel. https://thestateofisrael.com/mk/elazar-stern