Two-thirds of the Israeli public supports state recognition of non-Orthodox marriages performed in Israel, a survey published on Sunday by the Smith Institute for the organization Hiddush – for Religious Freedom and Equality revealed.
Divided along party lines, 68% of Likud voters, 91% of Yesh Atid voters, 41% of Otzma Yehudit and Religious Zionism voters, 83% of National Unity voters, 9% of voters of haredi parties, 82% of Yisrael Biteinu voters, and 95% of Labor and Meretz voters support state recognition of non-Orthodox marriages performed in Israel.
Additionally, among secular Israelis, 92% support state recognition of non-Orthodox marriages in Israel, while among the national religious, 31% support them. Among haredim, only 6% support non-Orthodox marriages in Israel. Within traditional Israeli society, 48% support the availability of non-Orthodox marriages in Israel, and among traditional, non-religious Israelis, 70% support the option.
Hiddush has studied the public’s position on the issue of freedom of marriage since its inception, and the goal of the organization is to ensure the removal of the monopoly of the Rabbinate over marriages in Israel.
The survey was conducted in early August 2024 with a sample of 800 people. The survey sampling error was 3.5%.
The survey also examined attitudes towards “Utah marriages,” where couples can marry in the state of Utah in the US online without leaving Israel. Over a year ago, the Israeli Supreme Court ruled that the Population Authority must register any couple married through the Utah online option as married. The survey assessed both the awareness of this marriage platform and the level of support for it.
According to the survey results, 69% of Israeli Jews are unaware that it is possible to have a civil marriage in the United States without leaving Israel. About two-thirds of Israelis supported this option when informed of its existence, and 34% were opposed.
What option would an Israeli choose for their children?
When asked which way they would like their children to marry, assuming all options were available, only 50% of Israeli Jews chose an Orthodox marriage. Nearly a quarter (22%) would choose a civil marriage, 8% abroad, and 14% through a “Utah marriage.” Over a tenth (13%) would choose a Conservative or Reform marriage, and 15% would choose cohabitation without a formal marriage.
Among secular Jews, only 15% would choose an Orthodox wedding, while 98% of haredim and 87% of religious Jews would choose a religious wedding. Among immigrants from the former Soviet Union, only 14% prefer an Orthodox wedding.
Another noteworthy aspect of the survey was the difference in men’s and women’s views on the subject. Only 44% of women would prefer an Orthodox wedding, while 55% of men prefer one. While 72% of Israeli Jewish women support the recognition of non-Orthodox marriages, only 62% of men share this view. Furthermore, 73% of women support Utah marriages, compared to 59% of men.
Head of Hiddush, CEO Rabbi Uri Regev, stated in response to the results of the survey, “A large majority [of the Israeli public] rejects the policies of Israeli governments that have succumbed to the blackmail of the ultra-Orthodox parties since the founding of the state, and imposed the authority of the Orthodox Rabbinate on the entire Jewish public.”
He continued, “The irony is that the Rabbinate has managed to alienate tens of thousands of couples from the institution of marriage, leading them to prefer cohabitation without formal marriage.”
He then attributed the Rabbinate as the greatest threat to the institution of marriage in Israel.
“Since its establishment, Hiddush has fought to promote freedom of choice in marriage and divorce and to abolish the monopoly of the anachronistic Chief Rabbinate,” Regev stated.
“The events of the judicial overhaul and the government’s conduct on religious matters since the war give hope that in the next elections, the public will express its preference by supporting only those parties that commit to implementing the principles of freedom of religion and conscience, as guaranteed in the Declaration of Independence, including the introduction of civil marriage and divorce, befitting a truly Jewish and democratic state,” he concluded.
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