Who Is Galia Albin? Businesswoman Sparks Controversy With Remarks on Netanyahu Voters

Businesswoman Galia Albin recently resurfaced in headlines following an interview on Avi Shushan's podcast, "HaKol Patuach," where she made sharp remarks about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's voters, linking "Bibi-ists" to a Mizrahi (Eastern) background. Albin stated, "The Bibi-ists are only Mizrahim," and questioned the cognitive process behind voting for the Likud party, asking, "Is there no connection between your hand that puts in a ballot and your brain?". These comments ignited strong reactions and brought renewed attention to a figure who has navigated the worlds of business, media, culture, and politics for decades.

Albin, born in Haifa in 1949 to Austrian parents, holds advanced degrees in psychology from Northwestern University, studied law at Tel Aviv University, and completed a management course at Harvard. She began her public career in municipal administration, managing youth and sports departments in Rishon LeZion and Tel Aviv in the late 1970s. Her political involvement dates back to the late 1970s when she joined the Liberal Party, part of the Likud bloc, where she met her second husband, Miki Albin. She was a member of the Likud for years before moving to the Kadima party and attempting to enter the Knesset, though she was not elected.

A significant event in Albin's life was the August 1985 death of her husband, Miki Albin, who died after falling from a third-story window during an investigation into alleged stock manipulation. While suicide was speculated, Galia Albin has publicly questioned this, proposing in a 2020 interview that he was drugged and pushed by another person. Miki Albin's death marked a turning point in her business career, as she inherited stakes in public companies and became more actively involved in their management.

In the late 1980s, Albin entered publishing, involved with the Hebrew edition of "Penthouse" and later acquiring "Monitin," a magazine co-founded by her husband. She also managed Koor Multimedia in the mid-1990s and has served on the boards of various companies in construction, industry, technology, and communications. Her business ventures extended to real estate, capital markets, internet, and media, including co-founding the women's portal "Nash'er" and the product brand "Gaia." She was also a significant investor in the American TV channel Jewish Life Television.

Beyond business, Albin authored books on coping with loss and aging, and in 2000, she starred in the Israeli film "Starting Over," based on her book. She furthered her acting studies and appeared in other productions. Albin has also been active in numerous public organizations, serving as president of the Council for Child Protection, a board member of "Computers for Every Child," and chairing various foundations and institutions, including the Tel Aviv Cinematheque and the University of Haifa's Friends Association. She also initiated "Live Hatikva," a project connecting Jews globally through a simultaneous singing of "Hatikva."

Albin has been married three times and has four children. She also had a publicized relationship with businessman Yisrael Makov. She resides in Tel Aviv and is related to businessman Adam Neumann and model Adi Neumann. In the recent interview, Albin revealed her intention to vote for Naftali Bennett in the upcoming elections, envisioning a government led by Bennett as Prime Minister, with Gadi Eisenkot as Defense Minister and Yair Lapid as Foreign Minister.