Prime Minister and Likud chairman Binyamin Netanyahu on Tuesday revealed the seven new reserved candidates who will be placed on Likud’s Knesset slate. They include figures from the security, media and legal worlds, alongside representatives identified with bereaved families and the events of the war.
Among the prominent names are media personality Yaakov Bardugo, who will be placed 11th; Talik Gvili, mother of Master Sergeant Rani Gvili, H’yd, in ninth place; and Elisha Medan, the reserve soldier who was critically wounded in the Gaza Strip and lost both his legs, in 15th place.
Attorney David Peter will also be reserved the 16th spot, former Labor faction chairman Eli Goldschmidt the 26th, Itzik Buntzel, father of the late Staff Sergeant Amit Buntzel, the 29th, and Brig. Gen. (res.) Amir Avivi the 35th.
The highest position among the new reserved candidates has been given to Talik Gvili, the mother of Yasam police officer Master Sergeant Rani Gvili, H’yd, who died a hero fighting terrorists on October 7 and whose body was abducted to Gaza, was reserved the ninth spot on the Likud slate.
“Rani, Hy”d, went out to fight on the morning of October 7 despite being injured, and managed to save the lives of many before he was killed and his body was abducted to Gaza. Rani was the first to go out and the last hostage to be returned, through Operation ‘Brave Heart,’ a special operation by the IDF and security forces to bring him home,” the Likud statement said.
“Throughout the entire journey, Talik and the Gvili family demonstrated extraordinary strength, deep faith, and determination that did not break even in the most difficult moments. Talik carried Rani’s memory with pride, spread the story of his heroism, his love for the country, and his Zionist values. Talik entered deeply into the hearts of Israelis and many people around the world.”
One of the most intriguing names on the slate is media personality and political commentator Yaakov Bardugo, who has been identified in recent years with the national camp and is considered close to Netanyahu.
Bardugo, a lawyer by training, hosts programs on Channel 14 and Radio Galey Yisrael. He previously served as a commentator and presenter on Army Radio and as a columnist for Yisrael Hayom. Before his media career, he served as director-general of Mifal HaPayis and director-general of the Federation of Local Authorities.
His placement at No. 11 gives him a high position on the slate and is expected to make him one of the most prominent new members of the Likud faction in the next Knesset, subject, of course, to the election results.
Elisha Medan will be placed 15th on the Likud slate. Medan, a reserve soldier, was critically wounded in battle in Gaza and lost both his legs. He is a father of six and one of the founders of the Avigayil yishuv in the Chevron Hills. He is the son of Rabbi Yaakov Medan, the Rosh Yeshivah of the Har Etzion Hesder Yeshiva in Alon Shvut.
In a statement announcing his selection, Likud said that “four of Medan’s comrades fell in the battle in which he lost both his legs. Since his injury, Medan has undergone a long and complex rehabilitation process, during which his personal story became a symbol of strength, determination, and faith in the power of life. From the severe injury and the heavy price he paid, Elisha chose to look forward, to continue taking action, strengthening others and giving hope to many Israelis. His personal story expresses the spirit of Israel’s soldiers and the strength of Israeli society to withstand the most difficult tests, rehabilitate and continue building.”
Immediately after him, in 16th place, will be Attorney David Peter, a leading legal expert and researcher at the Kohelet Policy Forum, who has worked over the years in constitutional and public law.
He has become well-known over the past year for his representation of coalition figures, including Netanyahu, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, in a number of High Court hearings.
“Peter is a second-generation descendant of Holocaust survivors. He was born in Hungary toward the end of the communist regime, to parents who were born and raised under its shadow. At the age of one and a half, he made aliyah with his family, first to the absorption center in Mevaseret Zion and afterward to Haifa. His family’s journey from life under a communist regime to the free and sovereign State of Israel accompanies his path and worldview to this day,” the Likud statement said.
“Over the years, he acquired broad legal and public experience in constitutional, public and commercial law, research and litigation, and dedicated his work to the fundamental questions of government, law, liberty and democracy in Israel.
“Attorney Peter brings to his work legal depth, a sense of mission and a deep connection between the story of the Jewish people and Israel.
Another reserved candidate is Eli Goldschmidt, a former Knesset member from the Labor Party who also served as chairman of the Labor faction in the Knesset and was placed in the 26th spot.
“After years of living in the Gaza border communities, and following the events of October 7, Goldschmidt announced that he had undergone a process of disillusionment. He changed his diplomatic and security positions and today supports the positions of Netanyahu, Likud and the national camp,” the Likud statement said.
“Eli brings with him an important, experienced and clear-eyed voice. As someone who worked for years in the public and political arenas and became closely acquainted with different perspectives in Israeli society, he brings experience, sound judgment and a deep understanding of Israeli reality.”
Itzik Bonzel, father of Staff Sergeant Amit Buntzel, H’yd, a soldier and commander in the Paratroopers Reconnaissance Unit who fell in battle in the Gaza Strip, was placed in the 29th spot.
On the morning after the October 7 attack, Bonzel’s two sons, Amit and Nadav, both soldiers and commanders in the Paratroopers Reconnaissance Unit, went out to fight. Approximately 60 days later, Amit fell in battle.
Since his son’s death, Bonzel has become one of the voices identified with bereaved families, has been active in the Gvura Forum, and has appeared many times before Knesset committees and in the public arena.
The last pick was Brig. Gen. Amir Avivi, founder of the Habitchonistim movement (Israel Defense and Security Forum), who will be placed 35th. Alongside the announcement of his addition, Likud announced that the Habitchonistim movement is joining the party.
Avivi served in the IDF in a variety of senior positions, including deputy comptroller of the defense establishment, head of the Chief of Staff’s bureau, deputy commander of the Gaza Division, commander of the Sagi Brigade, commander of Battalion 605 and commander of the Combat Engineering School.
“Avivi was born in Jerusalem and spent his childhood in various countries around the world due to the diplomatic assignments of his father, Pinchas Avivi, who served for many years as a diplomat and ambassador. At the age of 18, Avivi returned to Israel as a lone soldier, enlisted in the IDF as a combat soldier in the Combat Engineering Corps, and rose through the chain of command over the years to the rank of brigadier general,” the Likud statement said.
“Avivi and the Habitchonistim movement support Prime Minister Netanyahu’s security doctrine, which places the principles of decisive victory, initiative and Israel’s security independence at its center.”
(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)
