Isaac Fein

Isaac Fein
Member of Parliament for Technion
Assumed office 1 December 2020
Successor	Incumbent
Chancellor for the Islamic Emirate of Acre
In office 20 February 2020 - 21 October 2020
Predecessor	Office established
Successor	Eli Barak
Member of Parliament for Kiryat Ata North
In office 20 February 2020 - 1 December 2020
Predecessor	Office established
Citizenship	Akkan
Political party	Liberal Union
Religion	Jewish - Hiloni

Isaac Fein is a politician in the Islamic Emirate of Acre belonging to the Liberal Union. He is most notable for having served as Chancellor of Acre under his fellow party member and Prime Minister Joseph Cohen, a position he held from February 2020 to October 2020. He also ran for party leader to replace Cohen after the party's disastrous defeat in the December 2020 general election. He is currently Member of Parliament for Technion, having lost his previous constituency of Kiryat Ata North to the Conservative Party in the December election.

Akkan career

Party Founder (January 2020 - February 2020)

Fein - alongside Joseph Cohen - was a founding member of the Liberal Union, and was pivotal in its becoming a big tent for both left-leaning and right-leaning liberals. He also played a role in formally introducing non-confessionalism into the party's manifesto, wherein the party does not claim to represent only one ethnic/religious community in Acre.

During the February 2020 general election, Fein was identified by many as Cohen's 'right-hand man', and was seen as a natural shoe-in for major office should the Liberal Union win the election. The party was successful, securing 35% of the vote and thirteen of the thirty-seven seats in the Akkan Parliament. A coalition agreement was reached with the left-wing Labor Zionist Party, supported through confidence and supply from the Arab left-wing People's Democratic Union; Fein reportedly preferred a government of national unity with the Conservative Party.

Chancellor of Acre (February 2020 - October 2020)

Fein was made Chancellor of Acre, second only to the Prime Minister. During their time in office, Cohen and Fein set out to implement many of their campaign proposals. A second Israeli-styled flag was created, to exist alongside, and in equal standing to, the Islamic-styled flag already in existence. Judaism was recognised as the national religion, making Acre a peculiarity with two national religions (Judaism and Islam). Rabbinical courts - designed to handle civil affairs among the Israeli Jewish population - were created to complement the country's Sharia courts, while secular arbitration courts were established for other religions (or secular citizens).

These programmes were widely popular, and are recognised as having created broad consensus in the basic institutions of the Akkan government shortly after its creation. The party also stood with the People's Democratic Union and the Peace & Equality Party in their defence of the Emir of Acre, who, they argued, could act as a defence for the Akkan Arab minority against a majority-Israeli Parliament.

More controversially, Fein was a stalwart defender of Joseph Cohen's stance on a national lockdown, which the government avoided until the PDU (and privately the LZP) threatened to revoke their support for the Liberal Union. Right through until the October election, Cohen's administration vocally opposed a national lockdown, though relented for a period in April and May due to pressure from other parties. The party's defeat in the October general election is widely attributed to this unpopular lockdown stance.

Political Position

Fein considers himself a "moderate centrist liberal". He is a member of the Liberal Union's Centrist caucus, though also maintains friendly relations with its Economic Liberal caucus, a small section of the party who are economically right-wing.

Fein, as Chancellor of Acre, was a major promoter of Cohen's set of institutional proposals, which involved the design of a second Israeli-inspired flag, the official recognition of both Islam and Judaism in the state's constitution, and the creation of Rabbinical courts to exist alongside Acre's Sharia courts. This places him among a cross-party group of Akkan politicians who seek to address sectarian divides through compromise. He was also a key supporter of Cohen's controversial stance on handling the Coronavirus pandemic.