Congregation Sinai Presents Gerald Steinberg: "The 2019 Israeli elections: A Guide for the Perplexed"

Sunday, March 3
10:00-11:00 am

When Israelis go to the polls on April 9, they will have at least a dozen parties to choose from. Benjamin Netanyahu will be running for a fourth consecutive term, while also facing possible trial on corruption charges. He and the Israeli right will be challenged by one or more former IDF generals, as well as a growing centrist bloc, and the remains of a divided Labor Party. In the influential ultra-orthodox and Arab sectors, the old patterns are also changing. What are issues are of primary importance to Israeli voters? What are the chances of replacing Netanyahu? Will the search for new leaders put a former general in the Prime Minister's office? These are some of the questions to be discussed.

Gerald Steinberg grew up in the Bay Area, is a graduate of UC Berkeley and Cornell, and has lived in Israel since 1982, where he is a Professor of Political Science at Bar Ilan University, and founder of NGO Monitor, a Jerusalem-based research institute. His research focuses Middle East diplomacy and strategy, the politics of international law and NGOs, and Israeli politics. He is a frequent media commentator and oped writer, and recent publications include: “NGOs, Human Rights, and Political Warfare in the Arab-Israel Conflict”; "The Role of International Legal and Justice Discourse in Promoting the New Antisemitism"; and his book, Menachem Begin and the Israel-Egypt Peace Process: Between Ideology and Realism is scheduled for publication in April. He is also the recipient of the prestigious Bonei Zion and Menachem Begin prizes.