1952 Israeli presidential election

← 1951 8 December 1952 1957 →

Nominee Yitzhak Ben-Zvi Mordechai Nurock Yitzhak Gruenbaum Party Mapai Mizrachi Independent Electoral vote 62 40 5

President before election Chaim Weizmann ElectedPresident Yitzhak Ben-Zvi Mapai

An election forPresident of Israel was held in theKnesset on 8 December 1952 following the death of the Israel's first president,Chaim Weizmann on 9 November. Between Weizmann's death and the winner of the election,Yitzhak Ben-Zvi, taking office on 16 December,Knesset speakerYosef Sprinzak served as acting president.

There were four candidates:

• Yitzhak Ben-Zvi: One of the founders ofMapai (the ruling party, for whom he was a member of the Knesset) and theHistadrut (the country's largesttrade union), a former president of theVaad Leumi, signatory of theIsrael declaration of independence and a personal friend ofPrime MinisterDavid Ben-Gurion.
• Peretz Bernstein: A member of the Knesset for theGeneral Zionists and also a signatory of the country's declaration of independence.
• Yitzhak Gruenbaum: A signatory of the Israeli declaration of independence, a minister in theprovisional government, and though an adherent ofMapam, not a member of any political party.
• Mordechai Nurock: A member of the Knesset forMizrachi andMinister of Postal Services in thegovernment at the time.

Before the election,Albert Einstein was spoken to byAbba Eban about the possibility of becoming President. He declined, explaining, "I have neither the natural ability nor the experience to deal with human beings."^[1]

Three rounds of voting were required after no candidate gained an outright majority. Peretz Bernstein dropped out after the second round, with Yitzhak Ben-Zvi elected in the third round.

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