ISAAC Herzog was on Wednesday, elected as the 11th president of Israel, winning more than two-thirds of the votes in Israel’s parliament, the Knesset.
He beat Miriam Peretz, in a secret ballot among the country’s 120 lawmakers.
Eighty-seven lawmakers voted for Herzog, while 27 voted for Peretz. He will officially replace outgoing President Reuven Rivlin next month, with his seven-year term beginning on July 9.
“I plan to be everyone’s president.
“To listen to any position and listen to any person, build bridges of agreements … within us and with our brothers and sisters in the Diaspora.
“The challenges are great and must not be underestimated. It is essential to tend to the bleeding wounds in our society; we must defend Israel’s international standing and its good name among the nations; combat antisemitism and hatred of Israel; protect the pillars of our democracy,” Herzog said after the vote.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Isaac Herzog on his election as Israel’s next president, saying, “I wish him great success on behalf of all Israel’s citizens.
“I thank Miriam Peretz for her honorable candidacy and I am convinced that she will continue to contribute to Israeli society, as she has done all her life.”
Herzog was a member of Knesset from the center-left Labor Party for 20 years and ran against Netanyahu as the party’s leader in the 2015 elections, which he lost.
In 2018, Herzog left politics and was elected chairman of the Jewish Agency, the world’s largest Jewish non-profit.
Herzog is experienced in foreign policy and has close connections in the U.S. with both Democrats and Republicans. He has a personal relationship with President Biden and members of his administration.
He will take office on July 9, replacing Reuven Rivlin.
