Spouse of the prime minister of Israel

Not to be confused with First Lady of Israel.

The spouse of the prime minister of Israel^[a] refers to the wife or husband of the head of government of Israel. It is not an official position or title.

Spouse of the prime minister of Israel
בן הזוג של ראש ממשלת ישראל‎
Incumbent Sara Netanyahu since December 29, 2022
Residence	Beit Aghion
Inaugural holder	Paula Ben-Gurion
Formation	May 17, 1948

History

The spouse of Israel's prime minister assists him with ceremonial duties and performs various other functions. The wife of the current prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is Sara Netanyahu.

Name	Portrait	Term began	Term ended	Prime Minister of Israel	Notes
Paula Ben-Gurion		May 17, 1948	January 26, 1954	David Ben-Gurion	Wife of the first Prime Minister of Israel. Born in the Russian Empire and raised in the United States.[1]
Tzippora Sharett		January 26, 1954	November 3, 1955	Moshe Sharett
Paula Ben-Gurion		November 3, 1955	June 26, 1963	David Ben-Gurion	Paula Ben-Gurion's second tenure as the wife of the prime minister.
Position vacant		June 26, 1963	March 3, 1964	Levi Eshkol	Levi Eshkol's second wife, Elisheva Kaplan, died in 1959 before he became Israel's prime minister. On 3 March 1964 he was the first and only prime minister to marry while in office.[2]
Miriam Eshkol		March 3, 1964	February 26, 1969	Levi Eshkol	Miriam Eshkol maintained her job as the Knesset librarian, in addition to her roles as the wife of the prime minister. After her husband's death in office in 1969, she founded Yad Levi Eshkol in 1970 and served as its chair until 2010.[3][4]
Ruth Allon		February 26, 1969	March 17, 1969	Yigal Allon	Her husband served as acting prime minister after Levi Eshkol died in office.
Position vacant		March 17, 1969	June 3, 1974	Golda Meir	Golda Meir, Israel's only female prime minister to date, was a widow. Her husband, Morris Meyerson, died in 1951 before she became Israel's prime minister.[5]
Leah Rabin		June 3, 1974	June 20, 1977	Yitzhak Rabin	First tenure as the wife of the prime minister.
Aliza Begin		June 20, 1977	November 13, 1982	Menachem Begin	Aliza (née Arnold) Begin died in November 1982 while her husband was still prime minister. The couple had been married since May 29, 1939.
Position vacant		November 13, 1982	October 10, 1983	Menachem Begin	Following the death of Aliza in November 1982, Prime Minister Menachem Begin gradually withdrew from public life until his resignation in October 1983.
Shulamit Shamir		October 10, 1983	September 13, 1984	Yitzhak Shamir	Shamir, who was born in Bulgaria, was a social activist. This marked her first tenure as the wife of the prime minister.
Sonia Peres		September 13, 1984	October 20, 1986	Shimon Peres
Shulamit Shamir		October 20, 1986	July 13, 1992	Yitzhak Shamir
Leah Rabin		July 13, 1992	November 4, 1995	Yitzhak Rabin	Leah Rabin's second tenure as the wife of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Her husband was assassinated on November 4, 1995.
Sonia Peres		November 4, 1995	June 18, 1996	Shimon Peres
Sara Netanyahu		June 18, 1996	July 6, 1999	Benjamin Netanyahu	Netanyahu's first tenure as the wife of the prime minister
Nava Barak		July 6, 1999	March 7, 2001	Ehud Barak
Position vacant		March 7, 2001	January 4, 2006	Ariel Sharon	Ariel Sharon's second wife, Lily Sharon, died in March 2000 before he became prime minister.[6][7]
Aliza Olmert		January 4, 2006	March 31, 2009	Ehud Olmert	Alisa Olmert is an artist, photographer, author and social worker born in Germany to Holocaust survivors from Poland.
Sara Netanyahu		March 31, 2009	June 13, 2021	Benjamin Netanyahu	Netanyahu's second tenure as the wife of the prime minister
Gilat Bennett		June 13, 2021	July 1, 2022	Naftali Bennett	Bennett rarely appeared in public. She was seen next to her husband a few times and spoke twice in the Knesset.[8][9]
Lihi Lapid		July 1, 2022	December 29, 2022	Yair Lapid
Sara Netanyahu		December 29, 2022	Present	Benjamin Netanyahu	Netanyahu's third tenure as the wife of the prime minister

See also

• First Lady of Israel

Notes

1. Hebrew: בן הזוג של ראש ממשלת ישראל, Arabic: زوجة رئيس وزراء إسرائيل

References

1. "Mrs. Paula Ben-Gurion Dies in Beersheba Hospital After Long Illness". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 1968-01-30. Archived from the original on 2019-07-16. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
2. "Eshkol, 68, Expected To Take Bride of 34". New York Times. 1964-03-03. Retrieved 2024-02-13.
3. Pileggi, Tamar (2016-11-26). "Miriam Eshkol, wife of Israel's 3rd prime minister, dies at 87". Times of Israel. Archived from the original on 2017-02-11. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
4. Aderet, Ofer (2016-11-28). "Miriam Eshkol, Wife of Former Israeli Prime Minister Levi Eshkol, Dies at 89". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 2018-02-01. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
5. O'Malley, JP (2017-11-27). "Who (or what) was Golda Meir's one true love? A new biography has answers". Times of Israel. Archived from the original on 2019-06-09. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
6. Ben-David, Calev; Gwen (12 January 2014). "Ariel Sharon, Israeli Warrior Who Vacated Gaza, Dies at 85". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on 12 January 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2019.
7. "Sharon, Through the Years". New York Times. 2014-01-11. Archived from the original on 2018-10-11. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
8. "גילת בנט בהופעת בכורה פומבית: "קול שלא מספיק נשמע" - מקור ראשון". Makorrishon.co.il. 2022-03-27. Retrieved 2022-07-18.
9. "גילת בנט: "כשאישה לובשת מלכות היא מייצרת מציאות"".