Who is Yariv Levin and will he be Israel’s next prime minister?

Some call him the architect and mastermind of the proposed judicial reforms while others call him a snake, but whatever you think, Justice Minister Yariv Levin definitely seems to be the mover and shaker behind all that is presently taking place in Israel – undoubtedly with a little help from his friends.  

Sitting side by side next to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, throughout Monday’s government proceedings at the Knesset plenum, where the Reasonableness Bill was voted down, by a vote of 64 to 0, Levin gleefully announced, “We are now heading to a long recess. I am setting out, knowing that we passed an important bill, but with no gloating and with a true wish to bring all parts of the nation together.”

The once civil commercial lawyer and politician successfully rose to the ranks to become Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice. With an impressive family pedigree, his mother’s uncle was commander of the renown Altalena ship (loaded with weapons and resistance fighters in 1948) and a member of the first Knesset, representing the Herut party. In fact, baby Yariv was held on the lap of Menachem Begin, who acted as his godfather, while Levin was being circumcised.  

He joined the Israel Defense Forces as an Arabic translator, ultimately publishing an economic dictionary in three languages. It wasn’t until 1997 that he helped to establish a Likud party branch in his Jerusalem suburb neighborhood.  

Initially appointed by Netanyahu in 2006, Levin assisted in legal proceedings against the then-Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. Finally, after being elected vice chairman of the Israel Bar Association, he began to rise in their ranks, as well, by leading reforms among lawyers as it pertained to their ethics rules. Frequently being chosen to head committees or factions, it’s no wonder that Levin eventually climbed the ladder to his present position, which he began in 2022. 

What is curious about Levin, though, is that he seems to have once championed minorities in Israel. In 2014, for example, he sponsored a bill which was ultimately approved, recognizing Christian Arabs as a distinct legal minority in Israel. So it was odd that he, who identifies as secular, later took the liberty of criticizing the American Reform movement when a Reform rabbi, along with a priest, officiated at the wedding of Chelsea Clinton. Levin said of the reform that they were “a dying world which was not even tracking the assimilation taking place on a vast scale within their communities.” 

It didn’t take long before Levin began to introduce his judicial reform plan which, in the estimation of many, will significantly weaken the Supreme Court’s authority. Based on the ability to override court decisions, the Knesset will have ultimate power if there is a simple majority. Opposition leaders immediately saw this as a complete change of the democratic system, and, thus, the weekly protest movement began.

Although being warned by some of the country’s most formidable leaders of the “mortal blow” these reforms would render to the economy by some of the country’s most formidable leaders, Levin continued with true resolve. Nothing was going to stop him from advancing his reforms’ agenda. In fact, he rebuffed the idea that his desire to change what he felt was a court system riddled with problems, could be better accomplished through reasonable dialogue.  

It was during that meeting of these bigwig elites, who tried to prevent the boiling cauldron, which is now happening, they got a chance to witness the real Yariv Levin. They described him as “an avowed pessimist,” claiming that it “dominates both his political and personal conduct.”

As a pessimist, Levin seemed to adopt a defeatist complex, believing that not only would his proposed legislation ever see the light of day, but that, in the end, it could be responsible for his political downfall. Now that he has shown his cards, there might be something to that, because many are starting to believe that he is the puppet master, pulling the Bibi strings, as the prime minister continues to give him full latitude and backing. But Netanyahu also shares the blame for facilitating the obsessively driven so-called architect of these unwanted reforms.

What appears to be a self-confident, tough as nails exterior, might be nothing more than a worried-sick Knesset member who is unsure of himself as he dreads the expected repercussions from his anxious rush to push through a bill which has angered much of the country, because of the way he tried to force-feed it on everyone.

This is why being a seasoned politician is so invaluable. Years of experience is generally accompanied by cool, measured and well-timed action, giving the public adequate opportunity to understand, consider and acclimate to new ideas and changes which cannot be suddenly thrust into the public arena and digested without discussion.

But all that seems to be lost on Omer Dostri, a writer, researcher and publicist who believes that Levin could very well be on his way to being Israel’s next prime minister after the Netanyahu era comes to a close. 

In his article entitled, “Yariv Levin: Architect of democracy’s victory, Dostri writes, “Most notably, one individual emerged as the key beneficiary to this reform – Justice Minister Yariv Levin, whose face has become the symbol of this endeavor. Levin can rightfully be regarded as the mastermind behind the restoration of Israeli democracy. For decades, he has championed the cause of curbing the unchecked power of the judicial system, thereby reinforcing the separation of powers in Israel and steering the country back to the period before the unauthorized and undemocratic judicial revolution.”

Dostri apparently has forgotten that the present Netanyahu-led government coalition leans extremist, right-wing and religious. The prime minister is very sympathetic to that ilk, and that accounts for two out of three of the branches of government. Take away the court’s ability to override unreasonable decisions or actions, of the executive and legislative branches, and now you have a monopoly of all three sectors. So how does that translate into “reinforcing the separation of powers?”    

Years ago, Levin lamented that our judges are making decisions, which negatively impact us, when no one voted them into office. He might apply that to himself, because he, too, has chosen to impact Israel’s citizens in ways they do not approve, and yet he was not really voted for by the people either.

Ironically, Levin’s very negative outlook on his ability to survive the political arena might be an accurate prognosis because, if the people of Israel get a second chance to choose who their next leader will be, Levin will likely be last on the list, relegating him to a very unpleasant memory of the type of damage that can be caused by an unseasoned, unwise and uncaring politician who puts his agenda before the collective will of the people.