First Woman to Run for Knesset on Ultra-Orthodox Party Ticket

Dr. Nechumi Yaffe, a 50-year-old political psychology researcher and senior faculty member at Tel Aviv University, has joined the "Ultra-Orthodox Public" party and will run for the 26th Knesset. This marks the first time an ultra-Orthodox party running for the Knesset has included a woman on its slate, according to a party announcement on Monday. Yaffe, a mother of three and resident of Jerusalem, has also been active at Harvard University over the past year, researching the ultra-Orthodox sector.

Her research focuses on ultra-Orthodox society and its social and economic challenges. In 2020, Yaffe was appointed special advisor on ultra-Orthodox affairs to the National Security Council, addressing issues such as poverty within the community. Following the October 7th attacks, she established an ultra-Orthodox task force that mobilized tens of thousands of volunteers to aid those displaced from the Gaza border communities and bereaved families.

Yaffe was raised in the Slonim Hasidic community in Jerusalem. She previously taught religious law and history at the "Ha'Yashan" and "Ha'Snif" ultra-Orthodox seminaries and developed history curricula for all ultra-Orthodox seminaries. Her inclusion on the "Ultra-Orthodox Public" list represents a significant departure from the typical political landscape of the ultra-Orthodox sector, where women are generally not included in party lists for the Knesset. The party has not yet announced her position on the list.