Progressive Party
Progressive Party
Founded in 1948
The Progressive Party was established in 1948 as a result of a merger of three small parties: Aliya Chadasha (New Immigration), the General Zionist Union, and the Zionist Worker. The party ran in elections between 1949 and 1959 a. Prior to the 1961 elections, it joined the General Zionists to form the Liberal Party.
With respect to socio-economic issues, the party espoused an approach that it described as “liberal-socialist.” The liberal aspect was expressed in the party’s support for private enterprise and its desire to limit investment of public capital to areas that the private market did not enter. Even so, the party supported a pluralistic economy and policy that would ensure “social democracy.” The Progressive Party was centrist and moderate in terms of its foreign and security policies, and its members supported the moderate faction of the Ben-Gurion government. Regarding issues of religion and state, the Progressive Party was a secular, liberal party. In the 1950s, its members opposed religious coercion and called for civil marriages for those who cannot marry according to religious law.
| Election Year | Votes Count | Number Of Seats | Share Of Votes | List Of Candidates | Platform |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | 44,889 | 6 | 4.6 |
Candidates
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| 1955 | 37,661 | 5 | 4.4 |
Candidates
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| 1951 | 22,171 | 4 | 3.2 |
Candidates
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| 1949 | 17,786 | 5 | 4.4 |
Candidates
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Note that the candidates in this table are in Hebrew.
Pinhas Rosen, Yizhar Harar
During the years of its existence, the Progressive Party was almost a permanent partner in the governments headed by Mapai, except for a short period during the Second Knesset. Its representative in the cabinet was Pinhas Rosen, who served as Justice Minister.