Israeli Civil Service Positions Open to Political Appointments

The incidence of civil service positions open to political appointment in Israel is high by the standards of other western democracies. Moreover there may have been an increase in the cruder forms of patronage during the current National Unity Government. Without an effective opposition, both major parties may be sharing the spoils. Among the factors that may explain the generally high incidence of Israeli civil service positions open to political appointment are: the failure to have developed strong norms of non-partisan professionalism in the 40 years of independence; the importance of government positions in the national economy; and the lack of a strong majority party.