Israeli Democratic Party Candidates Back Boycott of Kohelet Forum Over Influence Concerns
Dozens of candidates in the Israeli Democratic Party primaries, led by party chairman Yair Golan, have signed a pledge calling for a complete boycott of the Kohelet Forum and its affiliated organizations from decision-making centers. The "Transparency and Public Cleansing Charter," initiated by candidate Lee Hoffman Agiv, commits signatories to sever ties between the Knesset and its committees and the Kohelet Forum and its branches. Signatories vow to prevent these entities from influencing decisions, receiving budgets, or providing advisory services.
Alongside the pledge, Hoffman's campaign is compiling a list of groups involved with the Kohelet Forum in recent years, dubbed the "blacklist" by the party. This list is expected to include dozens of organizations, nonprofits, researchers, and activists linked directly or indirectly to Kohelet, including those who received funding, disseminated policy papers, or promoted policies that the Democrats say paved the way for judicial reforms and changes in the education system. The list will be published before the elections and distributed to the public and Knesset candidates, accompanied by a call for a full boycott of the listed entities.
Yair Golan stated, "In our government, the Kohelet Forum will not roam the ministers' offices. If they want to see the government, they can do so on television. The era when a shadowy, anti-democratic organization wrote Israel's laws and managed the regime change from government corridors is over." The pledge has been signed by Knesset members Naama Lazimi, Gilad Kariv, Efrat Rayten, former MKs Emily Mualem, Michal Rozin, Mossi Raz, Yael Paran, Ram Shefa, and other candidates including Yaya Pink, Moshe Redman, Omri Ronen, Nimrod Shafir, Danny Elgart, Chen Arieli, Naor Narkis, and Yariv Oppenheimer.
Hoffman Agiv emphasized that the initiative aims to move beyond a symbolic statement to create a practical tool for public officials. She said, "Anyone who was part of this mechanism should know they are marked as entities to be kept away from centers of influence and significant legislative changes in Israel." She added, "I want to ensure that even after the elections, no one can claim ignorance about who they are granting access to offices and legislation. The days of Kohelet's control over the government are over."
