Yosef Shapira to be Israel's next state comptroller

Current State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss finishes his term on July 3.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
311_Micha Lindenstrauss (photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski)
311_Micha Lindenstrauss
(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski)
Judge Yosef Shapira will replace Micha Lindenstrauss as Israel's state comptroller, Channel 2 News reported Thursday.
Current State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss finishes his term on July 3.
Shapira, 66, has been a district judge for the past seven years and is a colonel in the IDF reserves. The agreement over the state comptroller's replacement was reached between the leadership of Israel's major political parties, including Likud, Kadima, Shas, and Yisrael Beiteinu, according to the Channel 2 report.
The issue of finding a replacement for the state comptroller was first raised earlier in the week by Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin at a Knesset Presidency meeting. Rivlin told his deputies that there is no need to call a special Knesset meeting to vote on a new state comptroller.
“We cannot let the process [of choosing the comptroller] appear to be political,” Rivlin said, explaining that if he receives a request to hold the vote on the new comptroller during the recess, he will only consider it “under the most dramatic circumstances.”
Rivlin said he was planning to decide, together with the Knesset Presidency, on the date of the vote in the coming weeks.
Candidacy for the state comptroller position must be submitted in writing to the Knesset Speaker, no less than 10 days before the vote. Each MK may nominate one candidate.
Lahav Harkov contributed to this report.