Esterina Tartman

Esterina Tartman (Hebrew: אסתרינה טרטמן‎, born 9 November 1957) is an Israeli politician. She served as a member of the Knesset for Yisrael Beiteinu between 2006 and 2009.

Political career

Tartman entered the Knesset in February 2006, two months before the end of the 16th Knesset's term after Yisrael Beiteinu had split from the National Union and gained another seat. She retained her seat in the 2006 elections.

Since the start of the 17th Knesset's term, Tartman has made a number of controversial acts. In October 2006 she stated that she would introduce a bill to remove Knesset Members who were deemed to be anti-Israeli, though she later backed down and did not submit the bill after a request from Knesset speaker Dalia Itzik.

In January 2007 Tartman submitted a bill to the Knesset that would curb the authority of the Supreme Court to overturn government legislation. Later in the month Tartman hit the headlines after saying Labour's nomination of Raleb Majadele a Muslim Arab for a Ministerial position was a "lethal blow to Zionism". Majadele's Ministerial position was eventually confirmed by a cabinet vote, though Yisrael Beiteinu leader Avigdor Lieberman abstained from voting.