List of presidents of Israel facts for kids

This article tells you about the people who have been the President of Israel since the country was founded in 1948.

The President of Israel is the country's official head of state. This job is mostly about ceremonies and is not involved in daily politics. The President's special duties include signing every new law and international agreements. They also officially appoint the Prime Minister and welcome ambassadors from other countries.

The President also has some important roles in the government. They are the only official who can forgive or reduce sentences for prisoners. The President also chooses the head of the Bank of Israel and the leader of the national emergency service, Magen David Adom. They also officially appoint judges after they have been chosen.

Early Leaders of Israel (1948–1949)

When Israel became an independent country on May 14, 1948, David Ben-Gurion announced its creation. Before the official government was fully set up, there was a group called the Provisional State Council.

Chaim Weizmann was the leader of this council. He acted as the head of state until he was officially elected as the first President of Israel in 1949.

Leaders						Elected
No.	Picture	Name (Born–Died)	Time in Office		Political Party
1	David Ben-Gurion	David Ben-Gurion (1886–1973)	14 May 1948	16 May 1948	Mapai	—
2	Chaim Weizmann	Chaim Weizmann (1874–1952)	16 May 1948	17 February 1949	General Zionists	—

Presidents of Israel (1949–Present)

So far, eleven people have served as President of Israel. Some of them served for two terms in a row. One president, Yitzhak Ben-Zvi, was elected three times, but he passed away early in his third term.

Isaac Herzog is the current President of Israel. He started his term in 2021.

President						Elected
No.	Picture	Name (Born–Died)	Time in Office		Political Party
1	Chaim Weizmann	Chaim Weizmann (1874–1952)	17 February 1949	25 November 1951	General Zionists	1949
			25 November 1951	9 November 1952		1951
–	Yosef Sprinzak (Acting President)	Yosef Sprinzak (1885–1959) Acting	9 November 1952	16 December 1952	Mapai	–
2	Yitzhak Ben-Zvi	Yitzhak Ben-Zvi (1884–1963)	16 December 1952	30 October 1957	Mapai	1952
			30 October 1957	30 October 1962	1957
			30 October 1962	23 April 1963	1962
–	Kadish Luz (Acting President)	Kadish Luz (1895–1972) Acting	23 April 1963	21 May 1963	Mapai	–
3	Zalman Shazar	Zalman Shazar (1889–1974)	21 May 1963	26 March 1968	Mapai	1963
			26 March 1968	24 May 1973		1968
4	Ephraim Katzir	Ephraim Katzir (1916–2009)	24 May 1973	29 May 1978	Alignment Labor	1973
5	Yitzhak Navon	Yitzhak Navon (1921–2015)	29 May 1978	5 May 1983	Alignment Labor	1978
6	Chaim Herzog	Chaim Herzog (1918–1997)	5 May 1983	23 February 1988	Alignment Labor	1983
			23 February 1988	13 May 1993		1988
7	Ezer Weizman	Ezer Weizman (1924–2005)	13 May 1993	4 March 1998	Labor	1993
			4 March 1998	13 July 2000		1998
–	Avraham Burg (Acting President)	Avraham Burg (born 1955) Acting	13 July 2000	1 August 2000	One Israel Labor	–
8	Moshe Katsav	Moshe Katsav (born 1945)	1 August 2000	1 July 2007	Likud	2000
–	Dalia Itzik (Acting President)	Dalia Itzik (born 1952) Acting	1 July 2007	15 July 2007	Kadima	–
9	Shimon Peres	Shimon Peres (1923–2016)	15 July 2007	24 July 2014	Kadima	2007
10	Reuven Rivlin	Reuven Rivlin (born 1939)	24 July 2014	7 July 2021	Likud	2014
11	Isaac Herzog	Isaac Herzog (born 1960)	7 July 2021	(Term ends in 2028)	Labor	2021

Timeline of Presidents

Facts About the Presidents

This table shares some interesting facts about where and when each president was born and passed away.

No.	Name	Born	Died	Birthplace	Death Place	Burial Place
1	Weizmann, ChaimChaim Weizmann	November 27, 1874	November 9, 1952	Motal, Russian Empire	Rehovot	Rehovot
2	Ben-Zvi, YitzhakYitzhak Ben-Zvi	November 24, 1884	April 23, 1963	Poltava, Russian Empire	Jerusalem	Har HaMenuchot
3	Shazar, ZalmanZalman Shazar	November 24, 1889	October 5, 1974	Mir, Russian Empire	Jerusalem	Mount Herzl
4	Katzir, EphraimEphraim Katzir	May 16, 1916	May 30, 2009	Kiev, Russian Empire	Rehovot	Rehovot Cemetery
5	Navon, YitzhakYitzhak Navon	April 9, 1921	November 7, 2015	Jerusalem, Mandatory Palestine	Jerusalem	Mount Herzl
6	Herzog, ChaimChaim Herzog	September 17, 1918	April 17, 1997	Belfast, United Kingdom	Tel Aviv	Mount Herzl
7	Weizman, EzerEzer Weizman	June 15, 1924	April 24, 2005	Tel Aviv, Mandatory Palestine	Caesarea	Or Akiva
8	Katsav, MosheMoshe Katsav	December 5, 1945		Yazd, Pahlavi Iran
9	Peres, ShimonShimon Peres	August 2, 1923	September 28, 2016	Vishnyeva, Poland	Ramat Gan	Mount Herzl
10	Rivlin, ReuvenReuven Rivlin	September 9, 1939		Jerusalem, Mandatory Palestine
11	Herzog, IsaacIsaac Herzog	September 22, 1960		Tel Aviv, Israel

See also

• List of prime ministers of Israel
• President of Israel