Who they are
Einat Wilf is a writer and former member of the Knesset who chaired its education, culture and sport committee. She was born in Jerusalem in 1970 and grew up in Beit HaKerem, daughter of a teacher and of a researcher in physical chemistry at the Hebrew University. She served as an officer in Unit 8200, then took a degree in political science and art history at Harvard, an MBA at INSEAD and a doctorate at Cambridge.
She advised on investment funds at McKinsey, was a managing partner in Koor Industries’ venture capital fund and a research fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute before entering politics. Her first book, on the coming argument over the character of the state, carried a foreword by Shimon Peres; a second, on saving Israeli education without extra budget, she wrote with her mother. She stood for Labor three times before winning a seat, and left with Ehud Barak and four others to form Independence.
Afterwards she spent a decade as a fellow of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and wrote The War of Return with Adi Schwartz on the Palestinian refugee question. She registered a party of her own, Oz for Equality in Service, saying she would build a list only if the ideas drew public support, and later joined Yoaz Hendel’s Reservists party.
Positions and record
Conscription: Draft everyone first, and strip every benefit and state service from those who refuse.
A Palestinian state: Says she is for it the day Palestinians want a state beside Israel rather than in place of it.
Religion and state: Rabbis should hold no state authority and the state should fund no religious services.
Where they stand
Breaks with the party line on 7 issues, marked below.