Itamar Ben-Gvir

Positions and record

• Religious-Zionist activist from his teens; trained as a lawyer and built a career defending Jewish nationalist defendants and hilltop-youth activists in court
• Took over leadership of Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) in 2019 and brought it into the Knesset in 2022 as part of the Religious Zionism slate
• As National Security Minister, oversaw a major expansion of police and Border Police presence in mixed cities and the periphery, and pushed through tougher prison conditions for convicted security prisoners
• Dramatically loosened civilian gun-licensing rules after October 7; by late 2025 over 330,000 Israelis held permits, credited by supporters with deterring attacks during the wartime period
• Long-time advocate of the death penalty for convicted terrorists and of expanded Jewish prayer access to the Temple Mount