By Aryeh Savir
(Photo: Wikipedia)
JERUSALEM (TNA) –Reuven Rivlin was elected Tuesday, June 10, by the Knesset as Israel’s tenth president. One after the other, 119 Members of Knesset cast their confidential ballot for one of the five candidates. No one candidate received the required 61 votes, and so a second round between Rivlin who came in first, and Meir Sheetrit, was required. After a second round of votes Rivlin was announced by Knesset Spokesman Yuli Edelstein as the winner with 63 votes. The left wing parties rallied around MK Sheetrit at the last moment, but Rivlin still gained the majority of voted his election.
The World Jewish Congress reported that in the first round of voting none of the five candidates — Nobel Prize laureate Daniel Shechtman, former Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik, retired Supreme Court Justice Dalia Dorner, Rivlin and Sheetrit — mustered the necessary 61-vote majority. Rivlin lead the first round with 44 votes, followed by Sheetrit with 31. Itzik received 28 votes, Dorner 13 and Shechtman received one. Two of the 119 votes were disqualified. One Knesset member was absent from the vote. In the second round of voting, only the two front runners were allowed to put their name forward.
Reuvin (Rubi) Rivlin was born in Jerusalem on September 9, 1939. He is married to Nechama and has four children. He is a scion of a rabbinical family, a descendent of the students of the Vilna Gaon, the son of Yosef Yoel Rivlin and a member of the will known Jerusalemite Rivlin family.
Rivlin served as a Major in the IDF. He holds an LL.B. from Hebrew U in Jerusalem and practiced law.
Rivlin has been a politician since 1988, serving as a Member of Knesset for the Likud party. He has been most noted for his role as Speaker of the Knesset from 1988 – 1993. Rivlin has further served as Minister of Communications during the 15th Knesset. Before joining the Knesset he served as Member of the Jerusalem Municipal Council.
Rivlin has been a presidential candidate in the past. He ran in the 2007 election for President as the Likud candidate. He withdrew after the first round of voting when it became clear that Shimon Peres had sufficient broad support to inevitably win in a run-off.
He has been a vegetarian since the late 1960’s. Rivlin is a well known of Beitar Jerusalem soccer fan, ever since he first saw a game of Beitar in 1946 when he was 7 years old. During every radio interview he “greets the listeners from Jerusalem.”
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JNS reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he “looks forward to cooperation with Rivlin for the sake of the unity of Israel and for all the citizens of Israel.”
At the White House in Washington, D.C., President Barack Obama issued the following statement: “The people of the United States join me in offering Reuven Rivlin congratulations on his election as the next President of the State of Israel. Over more than six decades, the United States and Israel have developed a unique relationship based on shared democratic values, our unshakeable commitment to Israel’s security, and our partnership in scientific research and innovative technology. President-elect Rivlin has a long and dedicated record of public service and we look forward to continued strong ties, to the benefit of both our nations, under Mr. Rivlin’s presidency. As President Shimon Peres nears the end of his term, he can look back on a remarkable legacy of courage, conviction, and compassion. He has dedicated his extraordinary life to the cause of peace, and I look forward to welcoming him in Washington later this month where he will receive the Congressional Gold Medal.”
At the U.S. State Department, spokeswoman Jen Psaki was asked by a reporter, “Do you have any comment on the new Israeli president?” and the following conversation ensued:
MS. PSAKI: Well, we congratulate Mr. Rivlin on his election as the next president of Israel. We look forward to working with him after he takes office in July.
QUESTION: But you’re not concerned that he holds some really hardline positions, especially on settlements?
MS. PSAKI: I’m not going to comment on his personal opinions. Prime Minister Netanyahu has made clear that the Government of Israel supports a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As you know, we strongly believe that the two-state solution remains the only viable alternative. You know our view on settlements as well.
QUESTION: Does it not compromise your negotiations, though, and your diplomacy if you have a president who does not believe in the Palestinian state?
MS. PSAKI: Well, again, Jo, we have been negotiating. In the past, the negotiations have occurred between Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas. And obviously they’re on hold at this point and I don’t have any prediction of their resumption.
QUESTION: Is that why you’re – is that your way of saying that the president’s views really are not germane because he doesn’t have decision-making or policy power in the government?
MS. PSAKI: That’s not at all what I was saying. We’ll let him take office in July and we’ll see what happens from there.
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Other reactions to Rivlin’s election were as follows:
Ronald Lauder, head of the World Jewish Congress: “In electing Reuven Rivlin to succeed Shimon Peres, the Knesset has made an excellent choice. Mr. Rivlin is a man of conviction, and he personifies the values of the Jewish state… Undoubtedly, President Peres has elevated the office of President of the State of Israel to the highest possible level. His tenure was exemplary, and he has probably been the best head of state Israel has ever had. His appeal in the entire Jewish world was unsurpassed, and his departure from front-line politics will be the end of an era. Nonetheless, we are confident that the Rivlin presidency will be, albeit different in style, equally successful. As Knesset speaker, Reuven Rivlin has proved that he can act across party lines and reach out to the wider world. One of the new president’s key tasks will be to strengthen Israel’s links with the Jewish Diaspora, and we look forward to continuing the close collaboration which the WJC has had with Shimon Peres with President Rivlin. Mazel Tov, Mr. President!”
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David Harris, AJC executive director: “We wish President-elect Reuven Rivlin much success in fulfilling the duties of this important office, which is vital to the image and standing of Israel in the global community. It is also critical that all Jews, whether in Israel or elsewhere, feel connected to, and welcomed by, the office of Israel’s President. In that spirit, as we have with each President since the state’s rebirth in 1948, we look forward to working closely with Mr. Rivlin after he takes office on July 24.”
Robert G. Sugarman, Chairman, and Malcolm Hoenlein, Executive Vice Chairman, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations: “We have worked with President Rivlin in the past and look forward to continuing to enhance the relationship in his very important new position. While the Presidency has been described as a symbolic post, it is in fact, a significant platform to speak to the people of Israel as a unifying force, to Jewish communities around the world, and to foreign leaders and personalities. The Presidency affords many opportunities to enhance the image of Israel, to explain its challenges, and to promote its opportunities. We are confident that President Rivlin will do all of those. He comes from a very distinguished family, long rooted in Jerusalem and steeped in the history and traditions of the Jewish people. We are grateful to President Peres for his life of service and leadership. We pray that he will continue in good health for many years.”
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Preceding compiled from Tazpit News Agency, World Jewish Congress, JNS, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.