Politicians
- Chaim Weizmann – first President of Israel (1949–52)
- Yitzhak Ben-Zvi – first elected/second president President of Israel (1952–63)
- David Ben-Gurion – first Prime Minister of Israel (1948–54, 1955–63)
- Moshe Sharett – prime minister (1954–55)
- Levi Eshkol – prime minister (1963–69)
- Abba Eban – diplomat and Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel (1966–74)
- Golda Meir – prime minister (1969–74)
- Yitzhak Rabin – prime minister (1974–77, 1992–95); Nobel Peace Prize (1994) (assassinated November 1995)
- Menachem Begin – prime minister (1977–83); Nobel Peace Prize (1978)
- Yitzhak Shamir – prime minister (1983–84, 1986–92)
- Shimon Peres – President of Israel (2007–); prime minister (1984–86, 1995–96); Nobel Peace Prize (1994)
- Benjamin Netanyahu – prime minister (1996–99), (2009–); Likud party chairman
- Ehud Barak – prime minister (1999–01)
- Moshe Katsav – president (2000–07), and convicted rapist
- Ariel Sharon – prime minister (2001–06)
- Ehud Olmert – prime minister (2006–09); former mayor of Jerusalem
- Rehavam Zeevi – founder of the Moledet party (assassinated October 2001)
- Yossi Beilin – leader of the Meretz-Yachad party and peace negotiator
- Yosef Lapid – former leader of the Shinui party
- Teddy Kollek – former mayor of Jerusalem
- Effie Eitam – former leader of the National Religious Party party, now head of the Renewed Religious National Zionist party
- Rabbi Ovadia Yosef – spiritual leader of the Shas party
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Famous quotes containing the word politicians:
“Many politicians of our time are in the habit of laying it down as a self-evident proposition that no people ought to be free till they are fit to use their freedom. The maxim is worthy of the fool in the old story who resolved not to go into the water until he had learnt to swim. If men are to wait for liberty till they become wise and good in slavery, they may indeed wait forever.”
—Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800–1859)
“And he gave it for his opinion, that whoever could make two ears of corn, or two blades of grass, to grow upon a spot of ground where only one grew before, would deserve better of mankind, and do more essential service to his country, than the whole race of politicians put together.”
—Jonathan Swift (1667–1745)