Ya'akov Tessler

יעקב טסלר

MK, Agudat Yisrael (Vizhnitz Hasidic representative; former Deputy Minister of Culture and Sports, resigned June 30, 2025 on rabbinic guidance)

Jerusalem-born Hasidic leader from the Sanhedria neighborhood, son of a Vizhnitz yeshiva rosh yeshiva; educated in Vizhnitz and Tshebin yeshivas before moving to Ashdod, where he served on the city council from 2013 as an Agudat Yisrael representative; entered the Knesset in 2019 as the chief Vizhnitz voice on the UTJ list; returned via Norwegian Law on July 17, 2025 after UTJ honorably withdrew from the coalition over the yeshiva-student draft issue.

Positions and record

Champions Haredi cultural and sports programming that respects Torah modesty standards
Defends the irreplaceable national contribution of full-time Torah scholars and their traditional draft arrangements
Upholds the religious status quo on Shabbat, kashrut, and halachic conversion
Faithfully follows the guidance of the Vizhnitz Rebbe and Agudat Yisrael's Council of Torah Sages on coalition strategy

Cite this page

Ya'akov Tessler, The State of Israel. https://thestateofisrael.com/mk/yaakov-tessler