Haredi Public Party Secures 2M Shekel Guarantee from VC Shlomo Dovrat
Venture capitalist Shlomo Dovrat backed the new Haredi Public Party with a two million shekel guarantee. The faction aims to alter ultra-Orthodox voting patterns and recently added Dr. Nachumi Yaffe to its Knesset list.
High-tech venture capitalist Shlomo Dovrat has provided a guarantee for a 2 million shekel loan to the Haredi Public Party, headed by Moti Leitner. The party, which submitted its electoral list for the Knesset, aims to capitalize on frustration with traditional ultra-Orthodox parties and reshape voting patterns within the Haredi community. Dovrat is the largest guarantor for the party.
Dovrat, who also heads the Aaron Institute for Economic Policy—which has published extensive research on the necessity of integrating Haredi Jews into the economy—previously chaired the Dovrat Education Committee. Sources familiar with the background of the contribution stated that Dovrat has been engaged in Haredi integration for over 20 years, values the courage of the new Haredi party, and decided to support it.
Additional Business Backers and Financial Backing
Beyond Dovrat, several other business figures provided guarantees for Leitner's party:
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Efi Shkedy from AFI Capital provided a guarantee of 200,000 shekels.
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Uri Eisenberg, a social entrepreneur, Jerusalem businessman, and son of Shlomo Eisenberg of Isras, along with Moshe Yehuda Sonnenfeld, each provided 180,000 shekels.
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Raul Stein provided a guarantee of 180,000 shekels.
All of these business figures belong to the religious-Haredi sector. Additionally, Yair Shamir and Eduard Cukerman provided smaller guarantees.
The question of the party's funding sources has generated significant interest in the Haredi sector and right-wing media outlets, driven by claims that "left-wing elements are behind the party."
Political Challenges and Inclusion of Women
Despite holding talks with Bezalel Smotrich, Ofer Winter, Benny Gantz, and Abir Kara, the party ultimately did not merge with any other faction. At this stage, it is not projected to cross the electoral threshold. However, several polls indicate the party could attract tens of thousands of protest votes, primarily drawing from the "Netanyahu bloc," presenting an additional headache for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he deals with multiple fringe parties hovering near the threshold.
«Dovrat has been engaged in Haredi integration for over 20 years, values the courage of the new Haredi party, and decided to support it.»
Yesterday, the party made headlines by including a woman on its electoral list following media pressure and internal lobbying by ultra-Orthodox women. Initially opposed to female representation for electoral reasons, the party placed Dr. Nachumi Yaffe in the third spot. Yaffe is a political psychology researcher at Tel Aviv University who has contributed extensively to mapping and understanding Haredi society. The move was considered bold, given that Yaffe has previously described herself as a left-leaning figure, whereas moderate Haredi voters traditionally align with the right.
In the second spot, the party placed Asher Perdi, a close associate of Rabbi David Leibel, who established ultra-Orthodox hesder yeshivas and serves as a rabbinical opposition figure to the traditional leadership of the established Haredi parties.
