Party Chairman Moti Leitner: “Charedi society faces an existential threat. Charedi politicians have made foolishness and detachment their policy, turning us into the most persecuted and vilified community in the country.”

(Monday, August 24, 2026) — The “Charedi Public Party” (HaTzibur HaCharedi) formally announced last night that it will run in the elections for the 26th Knesset, launching its campaign at an event in Beit Shemesh attended by hundreds of party activists, rabbis and public figures.

Speaking at the official launch, Charedi Public Party Chairman Moti Leitner talked about the importance of the community taking responsibility.

“Responsibility has been a supreme value for Charedi Jews throughout the generations. Sadly, the longstanding political leadership has forgotten what responsibility means,” said Leitner. “For the past three years, the State of Israel has been fighting a war on multiple fronts against enemies seeking our destruction. It began with a horrific massacre that reminded every one of us what responsibility truly means.”

The party’s electoral list will include representatives from the Ashkenazi, Sephardi and Chasidic communities, including a representative from the English-speaking community in Israel, reflecting the breadth and diversity of Israel’s Charedi population. Leitner pointed to the response of ordinary Charedim following the October 7 massacre as evidence of the community’s commitment to the country and its people.

“Thousands of Charedim stepped forward. They enlisted, volunteered and helped in every way they could. Yet the terrible tragedies experienced by the people of Israel appear to have passed over the heads of a detached political leadership,” Leitner continued. “When a party leader danced to the words, ‘We do not believe in the rule of heretics,’ at the very moment the people of Israel were learning that brave and holy soldiers had fallen in battle, it was not merely a mistake. It reflected a policy, one that has transformed detachment and foolishness into a political path.”

Under the slogan “This Time, We Take Responsibility,” the party’s campaign will focus on protecting the Torah world while advancing practical solutions to the major challenges confronting Charedi society.

The Charedi Public Party accused the established Charedi parties of allowing extremist elements to shape their policies, abandoning the interests of the broader Charedi public in the process.

“We must look reality directly in the eye: Charedi society faces an existential threat,” said Leitner. “Our streets are being surrendered to extremists who compete to see who can employ greater violence, and the leadership remains preoccupied with preserving its own power instead of finding solutions.”

“The representatives of United Torah Judaism and Shas have allowed themselves to be led by extremists from the Jerusalem Faction. They have enabled a violent and marginal group to dictate the policies of the existing Charedi political establishment, and we are all now paying the price. A vote for United Torah Judaism or Shas is a vote for the extremists and bullies of the Jerusalem Faction.”

The party warned that the growing divide between Charedi society and the rest of Israel can no longer be ignored and that continuing along the current path will inflict lasting damage on both the community and the country.

“We are in the midst of a head-on collision between Charedi society and the rest of the people of Israel. The consequences will be disastrous for us, for the Charedi public and for the State of Israel as a whole,” Leitner said, speaking alongside an Israeli flag, a first for a Charedi party. “This failure and this dangerous confrontation are not decreed from Heaven. They are the result of a dangerous process of radicalization undergone by the longstanding political leadership.

The party said its campaign will combine an uncompromising commitment to protecting genuine Torah study with practical proposals on military and national service, poverty, education and economic security. Its platform will also advocate the introduction of mathematics and English studies in Charedi schools and the expansion of employment opportunities.

“If the society of Torah scholars is to continue to exist and flourish in the Land of Israel, we must face reality and address the crises of military service, poverty and discrimination,” Leitner concluded. “Those who genuinely study Torah will receive full and absolute protection. Those who are not studying will serve. We will not establish only a Charedi brigade; we will establish an entire Charedi division.

The party’s full platform and detailed policy proposals will be presented in the coming weeks.