Orly Levy-Abekasis
Orly Levy-Abekasis (Hebrew: אוֹרְלִי לֵוִי־אַבֵּקָסִיס, born 11 November 1973) is an Israeli politician and former member of the Knesset. Formerly a model, Levy-Abekasis first entered the Knesset in 2009 as a representative of Yisrael Beiteinu, but left the party in 2017 to sit as an independent. In 2019, she formed her own party, Gesher, to contest the April 2019 elections. Although the party failed to win a seat, she returned to the Knesset following the September 2019 elections, in which Gesher ran together with the Labor Party. In May 2020 she was appointed by Prime Minister Netanyahu as the newly created Minister for Community Empowerment and Advancement.
Orly Levy-Abekasis | |
|---|---|
| Ministerial roles | |
| 2020–2021 | Minister for Community Empowerment and Advancement |
| Faction represented in the Knesset | |
| 2009–2017 | Yisrael Beiteinu |
| 2017–2019 | Independent |
| 2019–2021 | Gesher |
| 2021–2022 | Likud |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 11 November 1973 Beit She'an, Israel |
Levy-Abekasis worked as a model and a local television host, before following her father into politics. Levy-Abekasis's political views are primarily focused on social issues and issues of economic justice. Whilst a member of Yisrael Beiteinu, she was one of two members of the governing coalition to abstain from the controversial Nation State Law.