Yair Lapid
Yair Lapid is an Israeli politician of the centrist Yesh Atid party and a former journalist who has been the Leader of the Opposition since January 2023, having previously served in that role from 2020 to 2021. He had also previously served as the prime minister of Israel from 1 July to 29 December 2022, the second alternate prime minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs under Prime Minister Naftali Bennett from 2021 to 2022, and also as the Minister of Finance under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from 2013 to 2014. He is also the leader of Yesh Atid since the party's founding in 2012.
Standing...
Stories...
Oct 1, 2026
Lean Right
Opposition leader Lapid is actively campaigning for early elections and has accused Netanyahu of failing to bring hostages home and of mismanaging the war.
Likud views Lapid as a serial obstructionist who has no real security credentials and whose calls for elections are purely self-serving.
Oct 1, 2026
Lean Left
Lapid is trying to position Yesh Atid as the main alternative to Netanyahu and is courting center-left voters.
Meretz and Labor see him as a necessary partner, but criticize his refusal to rule out sitting with parts of the right and his reluctance to embrace the Palestinian issue head-on.
Oct 1, 2026
Far Left
Lapid has criticized Netanyahu but also supported some military actions in Gaza.
Hadash views Lapid as a weak opposition leader who fails to offer a real alternative, especially on Palestinian rights.
Oct 1, 2026
Far Right
Lapid is not mentioned in these articles but is the opposition leader often critical of the government's security failures.
Religious Zionism views Lapid as a dangerous leftist who would make concessions and undermine Jewish sovereignty in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria.
Oct 1, 2026
Center
As opposition leader, Lapid received a security briefing from Netanyahu and then told Ynet there is no reason to panic and that elections will be held on schedule despite the Flydubai attack.
Lapid is praised by Yesh Atid supporters for projecting calm and refusing to let Netanyahu use the attack for political gain, while the right accuses him of undermining security.
Oct 1, 2026
Lean Left
Lapid is positioning himself as the main alternative to Netanyahu, but faces criticism for not doing enough to unite the anti-Netanyahu bloc.
The left respects his opposition but is frustrated by his centrism and refusal to commit to a clear left-wing platform or merge with Labor and Meretz.
Oct 1, 2026
Far Left
Lapid is positioning himself as the alternative to Netanyahu while avoiding any real commitment to ending the occupation.
Hadash criticizes Lapid for trying to maintain a center-right consensus that ignores Palestinian rights and refuses to ally with Arab parties.
Sep 30, 2026
Lean Left
Lapid leads the opposition in Knesset and is the most visible figure at anti-overhaul protests.
Labor/Meretz respect his stance but criticize him for not ceding leadership to a broader center-left alliance and for his centrist economic policies.
Sep 30, 2026
Far Left
Lapid is positioning Yesh Atid as the main alternative to Netanyahu, but faces criticism for not offering a clear alternative on Gaza.
Hadash is skeptical of Lapid, viewing him as a centrist who avoids confronting the occupation and whose opposition to Netanyahu is inconsistent.
Sep 28, 2026
Center
Opposition leader positioning Yesh Atid as the central alternative to Netanyahu.
Lapid is the face of the opposition, pushing for a state inquiry and a slim constitution, and is the most vocal critic of Netanyahu's handling of the October 7 warnings.