Ya'akov Asher ( he, יַעֲקֹב אָשֵׁר; born 2 July 1965) is an Israeli

Haredi Haredi Judaism ( he, ', ; also spelled ''Charedi'' in English; plural ''Haredim'' or ''Charedim'') consists of groups within Orthodox Judaism that are characterized by their strict adherence to '' halakha'' (Jewish law) and traditions, in opp ...

rabbi and politician who currently serves as a member of the Knesset for the

United Torah Judaism United Torah Judaism ( he, יהדות התורה, ''Yahadut HaTora''), often referred to by its electoral symbol Gimel (), is a Haredi, religious conservative political alliance in Israel. The alliance, consisting of Agudat Yisrael and Degel HaT ...

alliance. A member of the

Degel HaTorah Degel HaTorah ( he, דגל התורה, , Banner of the Torah) is an Ashkenazi Haredi political party in Israel. For much of its existence, it has been allied with Agudat Yisrael, under the name United Torah Judaism. History Degel HaTorah ...

party, he previously served as a member of the Knesset between 2013 and 2015, and was also the thirteenth mayor of

Bnei Brak Bnei Brak or Bene Beraq ( he, בְּנֵי בְּרַק ) is a city located on the central Mediterranean coastal plain in Israel, just east of Tel Aviv. A center of Haredi Judaism, Bnei Brak covers an area of 709 hectares (1752 acres, or 2.74 s ...

, having taken office in 2008.

Biography

Ya'akov Asher was born and raised in

Ramat Gan Ramat Gan ( he, רָמַת גַּן or , ) is a city in the Tel Aviv District of Israel, located east of the municipality of Tel Aviv and part of the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. It is home to one of the world's major diamond exchanges, and man ...

. He served in the Israel Defense Forces. Asher is married, with seven children.Meet the MK: Ya'acov Asher
The Jerusalem Post, 10 February 2013

Political career

Asher ran for mayor of

El'ad El'ad, also spelled Elad ( he, אלעד), is a city in the Central District of Israel. In the 1990s, it was built for a Haredi Jewish population and to a lesser extent, it was also built for a Religious Zionist Jewish population. Located about e ...

, but lost to Tzuriel Krispel. He became mayor of Bnei Brak in 2008, after 19 years on the city council. He became mayor without an election in the wake of an agreement between Degel HaTorah and

Agudat Yisrael Agudat Yisrael ( he, אֲגוּדָּת יִשְׂרָאֵל, lit., ''Union of Israel'', also transliterated ''Agudath Israel'', or, in Yiddish, ''Agudas Yisroel'') is a Haredi Jewish political party in Israel. It began as a political party re ...

to share the post of mayor on an alternating basis. Prior to the

2013 Knesset elections Early elections for the nineteenth Knesset were held in Israel on 22 January 2013. Public debate over the Tal Law had nearly led to early elections in 2012, but they were aborted at the last moment after Kadima briefly joined the government. The ...

, Asher was placed seventh on the United Torah Judaism list, and entered the Knesset as the alliance won seven seats. His election to the Knesset meant he had to resign his mayoral position. He was placed seventh on the UTJ list again for the

2015 elections The following elections were scheduled to occur in the year 2015. Africa * 2015 Beninese parliamentary election 26 April 2015 * 2015 Burkinabé general election 29 November 2015 * 2015 Burundian legislative election 29 June 2015 * 2015 Burundi ...

, but lost his seat when the alliance was reduced to six seats. However, he re-entered the Knesset in May 2016 as a replacement for

Meir Porush Meir Porush ( he, מֵאִיר פֹּרוּשׁ, born 11 June 1955) is an Israeli politician who has served as a member of the Knesset for the Haredi Agudat Yisrael faction of United Torah Judaism in several spells since 1996. He served as the ...

, when he stood down as part of a seat rotation agreement between the parties in United Torah Judaism.Meir Porush Resigns, Yaakov Asher to Fill His Knesset Seat
Matzav, 22 May 2016

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Asher, Yaakov 1965 births Living people Degel HaTorah politicians Haredi rabbis in Israel Israeli Ashkenazi Jews Jewish Israeli politicians Mayors of places in Israel Members of the 19th Knesset (2013–2015) Members of the 20th Knesset (2015–2019) Members of the 21st Knesset (2019) Members of the 22nd Knesset (2019–2020) Members of the 23rd Knesset (2020–2021) Members of the 24th Knesset (2021–2022) Members of the 25th Knesset (2022–) People from Ramat Gan Rabbinic members of the Knesset Rabbis in Bnei Brak United Torah Judaism politicians Yiddish-speaking people