The Knesset on Thursday struck down a bill that would have called an election later this year, with Haredi parties agreeing to another week of negotiations on penalties for yeshiva students who avoid the IDF draft.

The bill to disperse the Knesset was voted down 53-61 at about 3 a.m., and as a consequence, opposition parties will not be able to propose similar legislation for six months. The Haredi parties, however, could still submit a bill to call an early election should negotiations not go their way.

Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Chairman Yuli Edelstein was optimistic that the sides would come to an agreement, announcing shortly before the vote that “agreements about the principles on which the conscription bill will be based,” had been reached. 

“Only a real, effective bill that will expand the IDF’s basis of enlistment will come out of a committee that I lead,” Edelstein added. “We are on the way to a real repair of Israeli society and the security of the State of Israel.” 

Haredi parties Shas and United Torah Judaism had threatened to bring down the government over legislation regarding the draft of yeshiva students into the IDF. 

The High Court of Justice ordered the government last year to actively conscript Haredi yeshiva students after they were exempted for decades. Leading Haredi rabbis have said they oppose any young men from their communities enlisting in the IDF, even if they are not learning Torah full time.

The bill in question sets rising target numbers for Haredi conscription, reaching 50% in five years. The dispute between Edelstein and Haredi parties centered around the penalties for Haredi men aged 18-26 who do not report to the IDF after receiving draft notices. 

Edelstein reportedly agreed to delay some of the sanctions on yeshiva students who do not enlist. The new version of the bill will include immediate bans on receiving drivers licenses and leaving the country and canceling affirmative action for government jobs and subsidies for college degrees for those who do not report for IDF service. However, the discount on daycare tuition will remain in place for six months after a missed draft date, and welfare payments will continue for a year. Housing subsidies would not be canceled for two years after avoiding the draft. 

Yeshivas with students that avoid conscription will lose government subsidies; if 75% of the annual draft target is not met, the government will stop subsidizing all Haredi yeshivas.

Israeli Opposition Leader Yair Lapid accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of “spitting in the faces of IDF fighters. Once again you sold out our combat soldiers  — for what? For two more weeks? Three more? … The government allowed [the Haredim] to ignore the reservists and help them [ensure] draft avoidance for tens of thousands of healthy young people.”

A new coalition of pro-Israel LGBTQ activists is backing former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo as its first choice in a ranked slate of candidate endorsements for New York City mayor, according to a statement shared exclusively with Jewish Insider on Thursday.

“Amidst the unprecedented rise in antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiment and activity within our city, we, LGBTQ Zionists of New York, feel a deep responsibility to share our endorsements for the Democratic primaries,” the group said in its announcement. “We believe it is essential to elect champions of both the gay community and of Zionists — those who support the Jewish people’s right to self-determination and the existence of the State of Israel.”

The group cited Cuomo’s “longstanding support for LGBTQ rights and plan to address antisemitism in the city,” which includes, among other things, a vow to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism into city law.

Cuomo, the Democratic front-runner who often touts his support for Israel and has called rising antisemitism “the most important issue” in the race, has been consolidating support from Jewish leaders in recent weeks, amid concerns over the increasing favorability of his top rival, Zohran Mamdani, a state assemblyman from Queens who has repeatedly refused to acknowledge Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state and described himself as an anti-Zionist.

In the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, many Jewish and pro-Israel activists have increasingly felt unwelcome expressing their Zionism in LGBTQ spaces — where the ongoing war in Gaza has fueled rising anti-Israel sentiment that has also shaped the June 24 mayoral primary in New York.

“New York City is home to the largest LGBTQ community in America and the largest Jewish population outside of Israel,” the group said. “The stakes of this election are beyond historic — they’re personal. As we enter Pride Month, we are grateful for our selected candidates’ work thus far. We stand with immense pride as New Yorkers, as LGBTQ Jews, and as Zionists, and we will advocate for a future where we are seen, heard and celebrated for all that we are — and nothing less.”

In addition to Cuomo, the coalition ranked Whitney Tilson, a former hedge fund executive who has been outspoken in his support for Israel and his criticism of rising antisemitism, as its second pick for mayor. Brad Lander, the Jewish city comptroller who has long identified as a “progressive Zionist,” is its third choice, followed by Zellnor Myrie, a state senator from Brooklyn, and Scott Stringer, a former comptroller who is also Jewish.

The coalition represents hundreds of LGBTQ activists in New York City from a broad range of organizations, a spokesperson told JI. The group, which says it plans to engage in get-out-the-vote efforts in the final leg of the race, is led by Roniel Tessler and Alex Kaufman, who were motivated to pursue grassroots LGBTQ Zionist organizing following the Oct. 7 attacks.

The group also endorsed several downballot candidates, including Mark Levine, the Jewish Manhattan borough president now running for comptroller; Jenifer Rajkumar, a Queens state assemblywoman hoping to unseat Jumaane Williams in the race for public advocate; and Patrick Timmins, who is mounting a campaign against the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg.

In a heated City Council race in Park Slope, the group threw its support behind Maya Kornberg, a Jewish political scientist now challenging Shahana Hanif, the incumbent, who has faced backlash from Jewish voters over her harsh criticism of Israel and alleged insensitivity to antisemitic incidents in her district.

“We are endorsing candidates who will confront, condemn and work to resolve the dangerous rise of antisemitism in our city, and ensure Jewish, LGBTQ and Zionist voices are protected and respected,” the group said in its statement on Thursday.